The City of Foley Railroad Museum Archives
Foley is named for J.B. Foley of Chicago, who bought land in the area in 1901 planning to sell it through the newly formed Magnolia Springs Land Company. He persuaded the Louisville and Nashville Railroad (L&N) to run a spur to the area by promising to pay for the crossties needed for the line. By 1905, the town was large enough to warrant a post office, and it incorporated in 1915. Foley was primarily a farming community, served by the L&N Railroad via a depot and warehouse for farm products, notably potatoes. During "shipping" season, thousands of boxcars would pull out of Foley loaded with potatoes, corn, gladiolas, and many other types of produce that was grown in the area. Logging was also an important industry in this area and the railroad proved vital in moving the timber out of the area.
The Bay Minette-Fort Morgan Railway, a branch of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad, was built for travel to Foley in 1905. The intention was to take the tracks all the way to Fort Morgan, but that never happened. The railroad station, built in 1905, burned to the ground three years later and was replaced the following year with the current station. In 1971, the L & N discontinued its services to Foley and planned to demolish the station. John Snook, owner of Gulf Telephone Company, bought the building for $1.00. He cut the depot and the freight area into two parts and moved it to Magnolia Springs, a small community five miles West of Foley. For 24 years he used it as a warehouse for his telephone company. In 1995, he deeded it to the City of Foley and it was returned to its original site.
The City has since turned the depot into a museum. Here, you will find pictures and artifacts that depict the culture of South Baldwin County, especially the City of Foley. The Museum is open Monday through Friday from 10am - 4pm. Admission is free. Go by and visit so you can step back in time to the "good ole days."
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Model Railroad Museum
The City of Foley was fortunate to be the recipient of an "O" gauge model railroad layout. Mr. Alan Goldman of Montgomery, Alabama donated his model railroad to the City in 2004. In giving it to the City, Mr. Goldman asked that the exhibit be available for children and that there be no entrance fee.
The Caboose Club (a group of railroad buffs) went to Montgomery, disassembled the layout, and put it in storage until an annex to the L & N Depot Museum could be built. The building was completed in December 2005, and the Caboose Club began constructing the layout in January 2006.
The exhibit is 24' X 60' and has a quarter mile of track. Some of the features are:
- 3 operating double track routes
- 12 different railroads represented
- remote controlled
- several animated sites
This layout represents the 1950's era, when the rail lines were in the transition of being run by steam to running on diesel fuel.
Much detail has gone into this exhibit. There is a Main Street USA; complete with a fire station, car wash, church, bus station, and a city park with an "N" gauge train that carries children around the park. You will find a farm, a sawmill, and a coal company on one end of the layout and an oil refinery on the opposite end. There is a line shack with working pulleys on lathes and other machinery as well as a man welding on trucks. "Thunder Road", and old Robert Mitchum movie, is playing at the Hub Drive-In. Just about anything that pertains to a community is in this exhibit.
The Model Railroad Museum was officially opened to the public in February 2007.
The trains are in operation on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
The hours of operation are from 10am - 2pm. Admission is free.
The Caboose Club
The Caboose Club was formed for train buffs to get together; watch videos; and discuss trains, railroads, and anything else that pertained to the railroad. This group of men would meet on a regular basis during the winter months and held "called" meetings on occasion during the summer. When the City Of Foley obtained an "O" gauge model train layout, the focus of the Club changed directions. They then had the task of putting this extensive model train layout into an exhibit that could be enjoyed by people of all ages.
In January of 2006, The Caboose Club began designing the building of this 60' by 24' layout. Groups of men, ranging in number from six to twelve, would come in twice a week for about four hours. As the exhibit began to take shape, Caboose Club members came in more often and stayed later. During "snowbird" season, visiting train buffs from Georgia, Mississippi, and even Canada would come to help. A year later, with approximately 6,000 volunteer hours invested, the exhibit was ready to be opened to the public.
For information on becoming a member of the Caboose Club or volunteering to run the trains, call 251-943-1818.
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The history of Alabama and the development of its railroads (1832) are deeply intertwined.
For more information, you can visit:
http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/face/Article.jsp?id=h-2390
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