The Boca Express Train Museum, operated by the Boca Raton Historical Society, is housed in a restored 1930

Florida East Coast Railway The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida, currently owned by Grupo México. Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a p ...

(FEC)

train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

. designed by

Chester G. Henninger Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West and Chester. It is ...

, built for Clarence H. Geist. It is located at 747 South

Dixie Highway Dixie Highway was a United States auto trail first planned in 1914 to connect the Midwest with the South. It was part of a system and was expanded from an earlier Miami to Montreal highway. The final system is better understood as a network o ...

, off U.S. 1 (Federal Highway). On October 24, 1980, it was added to the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. That the building was restored and turned into a museum must be credited to the philanthropist Countess de Hoernle, who bought the abandoned building as a present for her husband.

Use as a passenger train station

Historically, the station served several long-distance trains and one or two local trains. Into the early 1960s, passengers could take one of two

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

-bound trains (on alternating days), the ''

City of Miami Miami is a coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a population of 6.14 million, is the second-largest metropolitan ...

'' or the ''

South Wind The south wind is the wind that originates from the south and blows north. South Wind may also refer to: * ''South Wind'' (film), 2018 Serbian film * ''South Wind'' (TV series), 2020 Serbian TV series * , 2021 Serbian film * , 2022 Serbian TV s ...

'' (both via

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

) and the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

-bound '' East Coast Champion,'' ''Havana Special,'' and ''Miamian'' from the FEC's station. Into the latter 1950s, passengers could take the ''

Dixie Flagler The ''Dixie Flagler'' was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) between Chicago, Illinois and Miami, Florida. It began in 1939 as the ''Henry M. Flagler'', a regional service between Miami and Jacksonville, ...

'' to Chicago via

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

from the station. The FEC operated local passenger service between

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

and the

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

area until July 31, 1968. Service on the line was restored by

Brightline Brightline (reporting mark BLFX) is an intercity rail route in the United States that runs between Miami and Orlando, Florida. Part of the route runs on track owned and shared by the Florida East Coast Railway. Brightline is the only privat ...

, with a station north of the museum opening on December 21, 2022.

Exhibits

The museum contains two restored and unique 1947

Seaboard Air Line The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , known colloquially as the Seaboard Railroad during its time, was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime ri ...

streamlined rail cars, a dining and a lounge car, built by the

Budd Company The Budd Company was a 20th-century metal fabricator, a major supplier of body components to the automobile industry, and a manufacturer of stainless steel passenger rail cars, airframes, missile and space vehicles, and various defense produ ...

and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Boca Express Train Museum also includes a 1946 Atlantic Coast Line

caboose A caboose is a crewed North American railroad car coupled at the end of a freight train. Cabooses provide shelter for crew at the end of a train, who were formerly required in switching and shunting; as well as in keeping a lookout for load ...

and a 1930 Baldwin steam

switch engine A switcher locomotive (American English), shunter locomotive (British English), station pilot (British English), or shifter locomotive (Pennsylvania Railroad terminology) is a locomotive used for maneuvering railway vehicles over short distanc ...

For sale

The Boca Raton Historical Society put the Train Museum up for sale in 2017, saying that maintaining two historic buildings (the other is the Society's home, Boca Raton's first city hall) is draining the nonprofit's resources.

References

External links

*
Boca Express Train Museum
- Boca Raton Historical Society

Boca Raton Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

Railway stations on the National Register of Historic Places in Florida Buildings and structures in Boca Raton, Florida Former railway stations in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Palm Beach County, Florida Museums in Palm Beach County, Florida Railroad museums in Florida Transportation buildings and structures in Palm Beach County, Florida Florida East Coast Railway Preserved steam locomotives of the United States 1930 establishments in Florida Seaboard Air Line Railroad Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Budd Company Railway stations in the United States opened in 1930 {{Florida-railstation-stub

Use as a passenger train station

Exhibits

For sale

See also

References

External links