Train Museums in Kentucky: Every Railroad Museum by Town
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- 10 towns
- 4 with train rides
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Kentucky is the only state whose official steam locomotive, L&N No. 152, lives at a museum that bought its own seventeen miles of the old Louisville and Nashville Lebanon Branch to run trains on. This page is part of our guide to train museums in every state, and it covers 10 Kentucky museums, depots and railroads in 10 towns, from Covington on the Ohio River to Paducah in the far west. Type your town into the finder to see what is closest.
Kentucky leans toward riding rather than looking. Four of the stops here run trains: a museum line through the Rolling Fork valley, a volunteer railroad to a river gorge, a coal camp ride into the Big South Fork, and a dinner train through bourbon country. The rest range from a restored 1925 depot with railcar tours to a free museum that hosts a weekly playgroup for babies and preschoolers.
Hours, fares and event dates change often, and several of these places are run by volunteers, so check each museum page and the museum itself before you set out.
Look inside the book
Big engines, little legs. Bring Rally along.
In Rally Takes the Train, a corgi's little legs can't manage the big train stairs, so Dad gives him a boost. It takes about five minutes to read, a good fit for the drive to a Kentucky train museum.
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Quick picks: where to start in Kentucky
Best first visit with a toddler
La Grange
Admission is free, and Ernie's Lil Engines Playgroup fills Tuesday mornings from 10 to 11 am with train play and songs for babies through pre-K.
Biggest collection
New Haven
More than 100 pieces of rolling stock plus a 1.5-hour Saturday ride to Boston, Kentucky, on track the museum owns.
Best train ride
Stearns
The three-hour round trip drops about 600 feet into the Big South Fork gorge and gives you an hour and a half to explore the Blue Heron coal camp.
Best rainy day
Historic RailPark & Train Museum
Bowling Green
A two-story indoor museum in the 1925 L&N depot, open daily March to December, with hourly guided tours through restored railcars.
Free grounds to wander
Versailles
The equipment grounds in Woodford County Park are free to walk any day, and weekend excursions to the Kentucky River run April to September.
Small museum with a simulator
Paducah
Adults pay $6 and kids $3 to see a large HO layout and sit at a locomotive cab simulator in downtown Paducah.
Special occasion ride
Bardstown
Meals are cooked on board in 1940s dining cars, and the Princess Tea Party and North Pole Express welcome riders of every age.
Every train museum in Kentucky, town by town
10 museums in 10 towns, A to Z by town. Tap any museum for its own page: the full story, what to see, what kids can do, hours, tickets, contact details and 20 answers to the questions families ask.
Bardstown
Heritage railroad with a museum
My Old Kentucky Dinner Train
A classic dinner train in Bardstown with restored 1940s dining cars and meals cooked on board. Lunch, dinner, bourbon and murder mystery trains run on a set calendar, plus the North Pole Express and a Princess Tea Party for kids.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsBeech Creek
Depot museum
Beech Creek Railroad Depot Museum
A small depot museum listed in the rural Muhlenberg County community of Beech Creek. It has no official website or posted hours, so ask locally or through Muhlenberg County community pages before making the drive.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsBowling Green
Depot museum
Historic RailPark & Train Museum
A two-story museum inside Bowling Green's 1925 L&N depot, plus a 45-minute guided tour through restored railcars, including an E8 locomotive and a 1911 president's car. There are no train rides, but tours leave hourly.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsCovington
Railroad museum
Railway Museum of Greater Cincinnati
A volunteer-run railyard museum in Covington's Latonia neighborhood with about 80 locomotives and cars, including Pennsylvania Railroad E8 5888 and Broadway Limited sleeper Metropolitan View. Hours are not posted online, so contact the museum first.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsLa Grange
Railroad museum
La Grange Railroad Museum
A free, all-volunteer railroad museum on East Main Street in La Grange with model trains, artifacts, a library, and an L&N dining car and caboose outside. Open Tuesday to Sunday; Tuesday mornings bring a toddler playgroup.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsNew Haven
Heritage railroad with a museum
Kentucky Railway Museum
A nonprofit museum and working railroad in New Haven that runs excursions over the old L&N Lebanon Branch toward Boston, Kentucky. The depot museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, and themed trains fill the calendar from Halloween to Christmas.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsPaducah
Railroad museum
Paducah Railroad Museum
A small, volunteer-run museum at 2nd and Washington in downtown Paducah, with railroad artifacts, model trains and a simulator that puts you in a locomotive cab. Open Wednesday to Saturday, and admission is $6 for adults.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsRavenna
Rail preservation group
Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation
A nonprofit in Estill County restoring Chesapeake & Ohio steam locomotive 2716 and developing a rail heritage yard. There are no regular public hours; follow its events page for engineer experiences and special days.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsStearns
Heritage railroad with a museum
Big South Fork Scenic Railway
A three-hour round trip from the Stearns depot down into the Big South Fork gorge, with a 1.5-hour stop at the Blue Heron coal mining camp. Regular trips run May to early November, and The Polar Express runs at Christmas.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsVersailles
Heritage railroad with a museum
Bluegrass Railroad Museum
An all-volunteer museum and railroad in Woodford County Park that runs 90-minute round trips through horse farms to the Kentucky River. Weekend excursions run April to September, and the grounds are free to walk any day.
Hours, tickets, contact and 20 FAQsCompare every Kentucky train museum side by side
Type, train rides, admission, hours and who each one suits, in one table. Tap a column to sort it, or a museum to open its page.
| Hours | Best for | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| My Old Kentucky Dinner TrainBardstown | Heritage railroad | Yes | Lunch from $63.50, dinner from $76.50, murder mystery from $96, bourbon from $149.50, North Pole Express from $89 | Excursions on scheduled dates; reservations office Monday to Thursday or Friday, 8 am to 5 pm Eastern | Couples, celebrations and families with kids 5 and up |
| Beech Creek Railroad Depot MuseumBeech Creek | Depot museum | No | Not posted online | Not posted online; confirm locally before visiting | Local history fans and depot hunters |
| Historic RailPark & Train MuseumBowling Green | Depot museum | No | Adults $22, seniors 60+ $20, veterans $20, WKU students $20, ages 5 to 12 $14, 4 and under free, active military free; $5 off for museum only | March to December: daily 10 am to 4 pm; January to March: Wednesday to Sunday 10 am to 4 pm, closed Monday and Tuesday | Families, school groups and history fans |
| Railway Museum of Greater CincinnatiCovington | Railroad museum | No | Not posted online; ask when you contact the museum | Not posted online; email or message the museum before visiting | Rail fans and passenger car enthusiasts |
| La Grange Railroad MuseumLa Grange | Railroad museum | No | Free; donations welcome | Tuesday to Sunday; hours posted as 1 pm to 5 pm, check before you go | Families with toddlers and young kids |
| Kentucky Railway MuseumNew Haven | Heritage railroad | Yes | Train rides from $14 and up; specialty trains priced separately | Museum Tuesday to Friday 9 or 10 am to 4:30 pm, Saturday 11 am to 4:30 pm, Sunday noon to 4:30 pm (Eastern); closed Monday | Families with young kids and rail fans |
| Paducah Railroad MuseumPaducah | Railroad museum | No | Adults $6, children $3 | Wednesday to Friday noon to 4 pm, Saturday 10 am to 4 pm; also open when riverboats are docked | Rail fans, families and riverboat visitors |
| Kentucky Steam Heritage CorporationRavenna | Preservation group | No | Varies by event; engineer experience is ticketed | No regular public hours; events only | Steam fans, volunteers and donors |
| Big South Fork Scenic RailwayStearns | Heritage railroad | Yes | Adults $28, children $18, seniors $25, local rate $18, veterans and active duty free, military family $18 | May to October 13: Wednesday to Sunday; October 15 to November 3: Tuesday to Sunday. Departures weekdays 11 am, Saturday 11 am and 2:30 pm, Sunday 2 pm (Eastern) | Families, history fans and nature lovers |
| Bluegrass Railroad MuseumVersailles | Heritage railroad | Yes | Grounds free; indoor exhibits included with a train ticket; train fares posted at booking | Museum Saturdays (posted as 9:30 am to 5 pm on one page, 10 am to 4 pm on another); Sundays on excursion days; grounds open daily | Families, school groups and rail fans |
No museum on this page matches every filter you picked.
Map of every train museum in Kentucky
How the L&N and coal shaped Kentucky railroading
Kentucky's railroad story starts early. The Lexington and Ohio began running in 1831, and original stone sills from that line survive in a museum today. By the Civil War the rails mattered enough that both armies fought over them: Confederate raiders under John Hunt Morgan targeted the L&N Lebanon Branch, and retreating Confederate troops burned the Bowling Green depot and its trains in February 1862.
For the next century the Louisville and Nashville was the railroad most Kentuckians knew. Bowling Green's 1925 limestone depot saw more than 30 passenger trains a day in the 1930s and 1940s and was the county's largest employer. In the mountains, lumber and coal companies built their own lines; the Kentucky and Tennessee Railway ran more than 25 miles into the Big South Fork valley to serve 18 camps around the company town of Stearns. In the west, a 1917 double-track bridge made Paducah a freight gateway to the Burlington Route.
Each museum holds a piece of that story. The Kentucky Railway Museum rides the Lebanon Branch, the Historic RailPark and Train Museum tells the L&N passenger era and the Pullman Porters' fight for labor rights, the Big South Fork Scenic Railway runs the old K&T to a coal camp, and the Paducah Railroad Museum explains the river city's freight interchange.
Kentucky rail day trips
Trip 1
Bourbon country by rail: New Haven and Bardstown
- Kentucky Railway MuseumNew Haven
- My Old Kentucky Dinner TrainBardstown
The Kentucky Railway Museum and My Old Kentucky Dinner Train sit about 13 miles apart. Spend the morning with the model dioramas and the 2 pm Saturday ride to Boston, then book a dinner train out of Bardstown, or save the dinner train for a second day. Kids under 5 fit the museum ride better than most regular dinner trains.
Trip 2
Louisville area loop: La Grange to New Haven
- La Grange Railroad MuseumLa Grange
- Kentucky Railway MuseumNew Haven
Start at the free La Grange Railroad Museum, ideally on a Tuesday morning if you have a baby or preschooler, then drive about 53 miles to New Haven for a train ride. Note that the Kentucky Railway Museum's regular ride runs on Saturdays, so match the day to what matters most.
Trip 3
South central depots: Bowling Green and Beech Creek
- Historic RailPark & Train MuseumBowling Green
- Beech Creek Railroad Depot MuseumBeech Creek
Pair a railcar tour at the Historic RailPark in Bowling Green with a look at the small Beech Creek depot museum about 41 miles away. Beech Creek posts no hours online, so confirm locally before you add the second stop.
Drive times from Louisville, Lexington and Bowling Green
Times are approximate, without traffic, and estimated from straight-line distance.
| Museum | From Louisville | From Lexington | From Bowling Green |
|---|---|---|---|
| La Grange Railroad MuseumLa Grange | 30 min | ||
| My Old Kentucky Dinner TrainBardstown | 45 min | ||
| Kentucky Railway MuseumNew Haven | 1 hr | 1 hr 30 min | |
| Railway Museum of Greater CincinnatiCovington | 2 hr | ||
| Bluegrass Railroad MuseumVersailles | 15 min | ||
| Kentucky Steam Heritage CorporationRavenna | 45 min | ||
| Big South Fork Scenic RailwayStearns | 2 hr | ||
| Historic RailPark & Train MuseumBowling Green | 15 min | ||
| Beech Creek Railroad Depot MuseumBeech Creek | 1 hr | ||
| Paducah Railroad MuseumPaducah | 2 hr 45 min |
Good to know before you go
- Most of Kentucky's regular train rides run on set days: Saturday at 2 pm Eastern in New Haven, weekends April to September in Versailles, and Wednesday to Sunday in season at Stearns.
- The Big South Fork trip runs about three hours with a long stop at Blue Heron; small lunch coolers are allowed on regular trips and restrooms are on board.
- My Old Kentucky Dinner Train welcomes riders 5 and up on most regular trains; the Princess Tea Party and North Pole Express are open to all ages, and the Bourbon Excursion is 21 and over.
- The Bowling Green railcars have steep steps and narrow hallways, so little ones may need a lift, and there is no food or drink inside the museum.
- The Bluegrass Railroad Museum's indoor exhibits are closed Monday to Friday, though the grounds are open daily for free.
- Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation and the Railway Museum of Greater Cincinnati post no regular public hours, so contact them before driving out.
- The Historic RailPark in Bowling Green is closed on major holidays, including Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Easter, and the Bluegrass Railroad Museum closes on major holidays too.
Holiday trains and seasonal days at Kentucky museums
Fall and winter are busy on Kentucky's rails. At the Kentucky Railway Museum, Trick and Track Express is a costume-friendly Halloween ride and the Christmas Train brings Santa, Mrs. Claus and elves aboard. The Bluegrass Railroad Museum runs the Pumpkin Express and Santa's Holiday Express, La Grange hosts Spooky Caboose and Trunk or Treat, and Stearns offers Fall Color Runs, the Blue Heron Ghost Mine and The Polar Express. Bardstown's dinner train runs the North Pole Express, and Bowling Green holds Polar Express Storytime each December. For dates and booking tips, see our Kentucky Christmas train rides and Kentucky Halloween train rides guides.
Train museums just over the Kentucky line
From Covington, the Ohio train museums start almost across the river: Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, with its Cincinnati in Motion layout, is about 15 minutes away. From Louisville, the Indiana train museums include the Indiana Railway Museum in French Lick, which runs trains through the Burton Tunnel, about 1 hr 15 min away. From Bowling Green, the Tennessee train museums include the Tennessee Central Railway Museum in Nashville, with its stainless steel streamliners, about 1 hr 30 min down the road.
Rally's note on Kentucky
My mom dreamed up Rally's story before she died in 2021, and I think she would have loved the idea of a whole state where the trains still go somewhere: down to a coal camp, out to a river gorge, past horse farms. In our book, Rally rides the Pacific Surfliner with Mom and Dad, and the best moment is that dark tunnel and then the big bright light and everyone cheering. If you have a little one counting down to a train day, our train coloring pages help pass the time, and you can read how Rally's book began.
A train book for the drive
If your family wants a longer train trip after a Kentucky museum day, our Cardinal with kids guide walks through riding this Chicago to East Coast route with little ones.
Free for train families
Print the Rally coloring pages before you go
Watercolor coloring pages from the book, free to print. They fit in a folder with a few crayons for the drive to the museum or the wait for the next train ride.
Get the free coloring pages
A train story for the ride homeRally Takes the Train is a five-minute rhyming picture book about a corgi's first train trip to see his grand-paw-rents. Hand-painted in real watercolor. $13.99 on Amazon, for ages 0 to 8.
Buy on Amazon (opens in a new tab)More for train families
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- Every Amtrak route with kids: find a train by city or station
- Train books for toddlers for the drive home
Kentucky train museum questions
What is the biggest train museum in Kentucky?
The Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven has the largest collection on this list. It owns more than 100 pieces of rolling stock, including four steam and twelve diesel locomotives, and runs trains over seventeen miles of the old L&N Lebanon Branch that it bought. A replica L&N depot holds exhibits and about 3,000 square feet of model train dioramas.
Are there free train museums in Kentucky?
Yes, the La Grange Railroad Museum in La Grange is free, with donations welcome. The Bluegrass Railroad Museum in Versailles also lets visitors walk its equipment grounds in Woodford County Park at no charge any day, though the indoor exhibits come with a train ticket. Both are run entirely by volunteers, so check hours before you go.
Where can you ride a train in Kentucky?
Four places on this list run regular passenger trains: the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven, the Bluegrass Railroad Museum in Versailles, the Big South Fork Scenic Railway in Stearns, and My Old Kentucky Dinner Train in Bardstown. Each runs on scheduled days rather than every day. Check the calendar and buy tickets before you make the drive.
What is the best Kentucky train museum for toddlers?
The La Grange Railroad Museum is the best fit for the youngest train fans. It is free, and every Tuesday from 10 to 11 am it hosts Ernie's Lil Engines Playgroup, an hour of train play and songs for babies through pre-K. The Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven is a strong second, with model dioramas and a 1.5-hour Saturday train ride.
Is there a train museum in Louisville, Kentucky?
None of the museums on this page sits inside Louisville, but several are close. The La Grange Railroad Museum is about 30 minutes away, My Old Kentucky Dinner Train in Bardstown about 45 minutes, and the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven about an hour. The Kentucky Railway Museum actually began on River Road in Louisville in 1958 before moving.
Are there train museums near Lexington, Kentucky?
Yes, the Bluegrass Railroad Museum in Versailles is about 15 minutes from Lexington. Its volunteers run 90-minute, 11-mile round trips past horse farms to the Kentucky River gorge at Tyrone on weekends from April to September. The Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation in Ravenna is about 45 minutes away, but it is open only for events.
Is there a train museum in Bowling Green, KY?
Yes, the Historic RailPark and Train Museum fills Bowling Green's 1925 limestone L&N depot. A two-story self-guided museum sits inside, and 45-minute guided tours lead through restored railcars on the track out back. Tours start at 15 minutes past each hour from 10:15 am to 3:15 pm. There are no train rides here.
Is there a railroad museum in Paducah, Kentucky?
Yes, the Paducah Railroad Museum sits at 2nd and Washington in downtown Paducah. The Paducah Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society runs it with volunteers, and it holds rail artifacts, a large HO model layout and a locomotive cab simulator. It is open Wednesday to Saturday, and admission is $6 for adults and $3 for children.
Are there train museums near Cincinnati on the Kentucky side?
Yes, the Railway Museum of Greater Cincinnati is in the Latonia area of Covington, Kentucky. It keeps about 80 locomotives and cars on a four-acre yard, with a focus on the seven railroads that entered Cincinnati. Hours are not posted online, so email or message the volunteers before you visit.
How long is the Big South Fork Scenic Railway ride?
The regular Big South Fork Scenic Railway trip takes about three hours. The train spends about 45 minutes descending roughly 600 feet into the gorge, stops for about an hour and a half at the Blue Heron Coal Mining Camp, then takes about 45 minutes to return to Stearns. Picnic tables wait at both ends of the line.
What can kids do at the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven?
Kids can ride the train, watch the model dioramas and see real locomotives at the Kentucky Railway Museum. The Saturday ride to Boston, Kentucky, lasts about an hour and a half on vintage coaches. Holiday trains add more for children, from the costume-friendly Trick and Track Express in fall to a Christmas Train with Santa, cookies and crafts.
Can kids ride My Old Kentucky Dinner Train in Bardstown?
Yes, most regular lunch, dinner and murder mystery trains welcome riders 5 and up, and the dinner menu has choices for children. Two trains are open to all ages: the Princess Tea Party and the North Pole Express. The Bourbon Excursion is for adults 21 and over only, and popular dates can sell out months ahead.
What is L&N 152 and where can you see it?
L&N No. 152 is a 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotive built by Rogers Locomotive Works in 1905 and named the official steam locomotive of Kentucky. It belongs to the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven, where volunteers spent thirteen years restoring it before it moved under its own power in 1985. As of October 2026 it is out of service, so check its status.
Where is the 1911 L&N president's car in Kentucky?
The 1911 office car of the Louisville and Nashville's president is at the Historic RailPark and Train Museum in Bowling Green. It is the oldest remaining intact piece of L&N equipment. Visitors see it on the 45-minute guided railcar tour, along with an E8 locomotive, a railway post office car and the 1953 Pullman sleeper Towering Pine.
Does the Bluegrass Railroad Museum cross Young's High Bridge?
The Bluegrass Railroad Museum's line ends at Tyrone near Young's High Bridge, a cantilever railroad bridge built in 1889. The 90-minute excursion runs from Woodford County Park in Versailles to the Kentucky River gorge and back, so riders get a close view of the bridge area. Kentucky's tourism office describes it as the only cantilever-style railroad bridge east of the Rocky Mountains.
Where is The Polar Express train ride in Kentucky?
The Big South Fork Scenic Railway in Stearns runs The Polar Express at Christmas. It is a one-hour round trip in pajamas with hot chocolate, a cookie, the story read by the Conductor, and a sleigh bell from Santa for every child. The Historic RailPark in Bowling Green also holds Polar Express Storytime each December, without a train ride.
Which Kentucky train museums have Halloween trains?
The Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven runs Trick and Track Express, which it describes as fun rather than scary, and the Bluegrass Railroad Museum in Versailles runs the Pumpkin Express. The La Grange Railroad Museum hosts Spooky Caboose and Trunk or Treat, and the Big South Fork Scenic Railway has a Blue Heron Ghost Mine event. Dates change each year, so check calendars.
Why was Stearns, Kentucky, a railroad town?
Stearns was built as the hub of the Stearns Coal and Lumber Company, which Justus S. Stearns started after buying 30,000 acres of timber in 1902. The Kentucky and Tennessee Railway tied the town to 18 coal and lumber camps, running more than 25 miles into the Big South Fork valley. Coal mining along the line ended in 1987.
Can you visit the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation in Ravenna?
Only on event days. The Kentucky Steam Heritage Corporation has no walk-in museum or regular public hours. It is restoring Chesapeake and Ohio steam locomotive 2716 and building a rail heritage yard in Estill County, and it meets the public through events such as ticketed engineer experiences. Watch its events page for dates.
Is the Beech Creek Railroad Depot Museum in Kentucky open?
Its hours are not posted online, so confirm locally before making the trip. The Beech Creek Railroad Depot Museum sits in a rural Muhlenberg County community where the depot once helped decide where people built. It has no official website. Ask through Muhlenberg County community groups or local tourism offices, and consider pairing it with Bowling Green, about 41 miles away.
Keep exploring
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- OctoberHalloween Train RidesPumpkin trains and not-too-spooky rides for little ones, by state.
- NovemberThanksgiving Train RidesHoliday weekend train trips the whole family can share.
- AmtrakAmtrak With KidsWhich Amtrak routes work best with babies, toddlers and big kids.
- Plan a tripTrain Trips With KidsEvery Amtrak route, stop by stop, planned for families.