Member Appreciation Day
Celebrating our Members!
Saturday, May 17, 2025
Member Appreciation Day is held in conjunction with The Historic Spencer Shops Train Show on Saturday, May 17. All members of the N.C. Transportation Museum are invited to enjoy special perks, tours, and treats on Member Appreciation Day.
Weather permitting, members should make their first stop at the white membership tents outside Barber Junction Visitor Center to receive wristbands, boarding passes, and other information and goodies! In the case of inclement weather, members should check-in inside Barber Junction Visitor Center.
Core Member Benefits Include:
- Free admission to the museum.
- Free admission to The Historic Spencer Shops Train Show and all its related activities.
- The historic Woods Garage & Showroom WILL be open 11:30 am – 4:30 pm and is included with your admission.
- Free rides and train rides (limited seating on the members-only Seaboard Air Line 6604 observation lounge car and Pine Tree State rail car).
Members-Only Tours Include:
- The “Survivor” private rail car
- Museum artifacts in our Collections Corner
- The Powerhouse and Car Repair Sheds
Drawings For Special Event Tickets:
- Day Out with Thomas™ family 4-pack
- 4 standard coach seats on THE POLAR EXPRESS™ Train Ride
- Pair of Brew & Choo tickets
- Diesel Cab Ride ticket
Other Activities Just For Members:
- VIP lounge for members onboard stationary first-class rail cars
- Members-only rides in a 1914 American LaFrance fire engine provided by Brown Antique Equipment (weather permitting)
- Children’s scavenger hunt
- Additional member discounts in the Gift Station
- And more!
On Member Appreciation Day
First Stop: Weather permitting, members who reserve train-ride tickets, please come to the white membership tents outside Barber Junction Visitor Center to have your tickets scanned, receive your boarding passes, and be given wristbands. Members who were not able to reserve tickets should also come to the white membership tents to check in and get their wristbands and boarding passes. All members will receive a membership sticker to identify them for member-only activities.
Weather permitting, member tents will be outside of the Barber Junction Visitor Center from 9 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Pick-up your member gift, sign-up for member-only tours, and fill-out entry for a door prize.
If you reserved museum admission-only, please start your day at the white membership tents outside of the Barber Junction Visitor’s Center to redeem your admission tickets and receive your wristbands.
In case of inclement weather, member tables will be inside Barber Junction Visitor Center until 3:00 p.m.
We encourage you to be in line for your train ride at Barber Junction Visitor’s Center at least 15-minutes before your ride time to allow for boarding. Member-only trains will have a separate boarding line from regular passenger trains, and will leave at 5 minutes past the hour. Train rides last approximately 25-minutes. Please give yourself ample time to check in and sign up for all the activities.
Back by popular demand!
Limited seating free barbecue sandwich lunch at the Woods Garage and Showroom from 11:30 am-1:30 pm. Stop by the white membership tents to learn more and get your ticket. Woods Garage and Showroom are located less than 1-mile south of the museum at 1109 S. Salisbury Ave., Spencer, NC 28159.
The “Survivor” Rail Car
Learn More
Take a guided 30-minute stroll through a premiere vintage railcars being restored by the NCTM. The “Survivor”, a great example of a private railcar at the height of popularity in the 1920’s. Built for the F.W. Woolworth family, the original pioneers of the five-and-dime stores. Dante Stephensen, well-known for his eclectic nightspot “Dante’s Down the Hatch” in Atlanta, GA took ownership in 1982, but kept the interior true to the roaring 20’s. The “Survivor” not only was Dante’s personal rail car, but it became his home. See memorabilia from his lifetime of experiences, including his service as a Navy Seal and visits from an amazing list of famous people from US presidents to actors and athletes.
Maximum 8 people per tour
9:45 AM
10:30 AM
11:15 AM
1:00 PM
1:45 PM
2:30 PM
3:15 PM
4:00 PM
N.C. Transportation Museum’s Collections Corner
Learn More
From railroad passes to airplanes, the N.C. Transportation Museum has over 10,000 items in its artifact collection, many of which are not on display. During this tour, led by the Museum’s Collections Manager, participants will get to see and learn about a selection of artifacts not on display to the public, including Samuel Spencer’s personal train passes, Bob Julian’s shop manuals, and more. This 30-minute tour meets at the front steps of the Master Mechanics Office.
Maximum 15 people per tour
9:45 AM
10:30 AM
11:15 PM
12:00 PM
1:45 PM
2:30 PM
3:15 PM
The Powerhouse and Car Repair Sheds
Learn More
Be the first to get a sneak peek at the on-going restorations and additions to 2 original Historic Spencer Shop buildings that will soon be open to the public. This guided tour is led by one of your fellow members who is also the project’s design architect. This is a limited walking tour through the job site and a look inside portions of the structures currently under restoration and construction.
The coal-fired Powerhouse was one of the first buildings constructed to provide essential steam and electricity to the Spencer Shops and for a time the whole town of Spencer. It was expanded several times throughout its history serving Southern Railway, and this current renovation is the 3rd phase of restoration undertaken by the museum since before 2005 in efforts to open it to the public. The Car Repair Sheds were used by Southern to repair rolling stock through the steam era and into the diesel era. The structure remaining today is about one-sixth of what it once was, and the new addition will bring it back to about one-third of its original size.
Maximum 20 people per tour (Not recommended for children under 10 years of age)
9:45 AM
10:45 AM
11:45 AM
1:45 PM
2:45 PM
3:45 PM