Hamlet Depot and Museums

Absolutely fantastic museum and amazing model train set in a to scale rendering of old Hamlet. I love seeing the history of my home so well represented.

My 2 year old is in love with trains and doing a little research this station is proclaimed the #1 photographed station on the east coast.
Hamlet is a cute little town and it was a nice drive down from the Raleigh area.
The station is very cute and I can see why it is so well liked by photographers or people that want to get a pic with it. It has a very nice unique style. And of course I tried to get a picture, but he’s 2…
We went over to the caboose and the electric engine, the gate was locked, try explaining that to a 2 year old. I explained we can go over to the visitor center and see what we can do. He was heart broken… Until we got over to the visitor center. The guy running the place was extremely friendly and immediately went over to the trains and unlocked the gates and all the doors to the trains. It was awesome. I walked through the visitor center while my 2 year old played with the train table and all the trains and buildings… Very nice. 2 guys stopped by and we chatted and each of them said you have to go over to the tornado building.
The tornado building is awesome. We got real lucky and the guys that built the model railroad table there work Monday mornings to maintain it. I got to talk to one of the guys, and he was a real pleasure to talk to. The tornado train in the building g is very cool and so are the cars. The model train setup is extremely unique and fun to watch.
Lastly we hit the little red caboose and the electric train. We walked through the caboose, it was very clean and fun to play in. The electric train too is also cool as you can actually go where they drive the train and play with the levers and knobs.
Great job!

The depot and Tornado bldg. and the outdoor caboose, locomotive are open by tour from the visitor center. If your a railfan, then do yourself a favor and spend some time in the area. The wye and crossing out front are a great place to photograph/​watch the CSX trains rolling by, but unfortunately the number of trains which come by are at the most two/​hr. A few miles away next to route 177 is a large CSX yard that can one can view while driving by. Inside the depot are a number of displays and exhibits related to the railroad and there is a model train layout in the basement of the depot and another in the Tornado bldg. The attention to detail concerning the layouts has to be seen, these guys are artists.

I found myself in Hamlet, NC for work and was strongly encouraged to check out the Hamlet Depot & Museum. Hamlet is very proud of its rich railroad history and that is prevalent when you visit this museum. The Railroad Passenger Station is the only Queen Anne Victorian train station in North Carolina. The station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and said to be one of the most photographed stations in the eastern U.S.
I was in town photographing railroad employees beautifying a nearby park, which included painting an old B&O Railroad Caboose.
«The caboose is a strong reminder of our history as a railroad town,» said Miranda Chavis, Hamlet Depot and Museums manager and the city’s downtown coordinator. «It’s a history our community is very proud of. The mural also showcases our railroad past. CSX is at the heart of who we are as a community and they are a proud continuation of the legacy Hamlet has as a hub of the Seaboard.»
The depot is maintained very well and visitors will often find a handful of handsome railroad retirees and train enthusiasts anxious to tell them about the history of the place. I met Bert Russ. Bert spent a lot of time talking to me, close to two hours. He grew up in Hamlet. He remembered watching trains come in and out. He told me about the day he walked into the depot, went to the office in the top and applied for a job. He worked for the railroad for a very very long time. He even remembered when there were water fountains for blacks and whites. Such a wonderful man! It was his job as a railroader to get derailed cars back on the line. Bert was even kind enough to buy me a few postcards. I told him I was recently married and he said when he was, they didn’t have even $ 20 between the two of them. He was happy to pay. Such a sweetie!
The other volunteers were also very kind, informative and eager to show me around. I toured the dept and they took me to the basement to see an amazing model train layout of Hamlet. We also went to the Tornado Building where a model of Erie, Penn. and a replica of the first steam engine locomotive in the State of North Carolina. Originally built in 1839 by D.J. Burr & Company of Richmond, Virginia, it was one of four locomotives delivered to the Raleigh & Gaston Railroad. The others, all named for kinetic events in nature, are the Whirlwind, Volcano and the Tempest. The Tornado was briefly captured by the Union Army in the Civil War. It was restored and displayed during the 1892 Great Centennial Celebration of Raleigh, NC.
I’m not a huge railroad fan, but this museum was fantastic. The pride sort of beamed out of the volunteers. There was a lot of information and a lot to see. If you’re ever in the area or close, it would be worth a stop. Especially if you can corner Bert and hear about the days of yesteryear. The innocence of life before all the technology and crime and crap took over!