What is Explore Plano?
Explore Plano is the City of Plano’s exclusive checklist of the coolest things going on across Plano during Summer ‘17. At each stop, there will be a photo challenge that leads to the opportunity to win prizes. Explore Plano runs June 1-August 31. At the Explore Plano website, all of the challenges are listed out by month, and most of the challenges are completely free!
This Week’s #ExplorePlano Challenge:
The Downtown Plano DART connection has made treks down to the American Airlines Center and the Dallas Arts District a total delight, while also helping to eliminate traffic on 75, but did you know the DART isn’t the first popular cross-county railway in Plano history? That honor actually goes to the now comfortably retired Interurban Railway. For this week’s challenge, the City of Plano invites you to the Interurban Railway Museum to learn about the history of the railway.
The Interurban Railway ran from Dallas to Denison from 1908 to 1948, and it branched out as far as Waco and Corsicana. At the downtown Plano museum, you will find railcar #360, which was built in 1911 and is now 106 years old! One of the best parts of the museum is the chance to hop on board car #360 and see how train cars looked a century ago. The museum itself is housed in the original train depot, which was refurbished in 1990 to meet museum needs. The museum has been open six days a week since 2011, when the Plano Conservancy for Historic Preservation took over stewardship.
The museum has also become a favorite of kids in Plano because of the weekly storytime, which takes place every Friday at 10:30 a.m. Here, Genie and her friend Motormouse Eugene lead toddlers and preschoolers in storytime and singalongs. After that, the kids are given a tour of the car by a motorman in full uniform.
For this week’s challenge, stop by the Interurban Museum and take a selfie next to railcar #360! And don’t forget to visit the museum’s website to learn more about the Interurban Railway’s history connecting Plano to nearby cities.
How To Win Cool Stuff:
- Take a pic of yourself with car #360 at the Interurban Railway Museum and post to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter
- Be sure to use the hashtag #ExplorePlano
- The City of Plano will draw a winner (almost) every week, based on who uses the hashtag
- Winners will receive a mystery prize pack (which may include any of the following: theatre tickets, pool passes, recreation center passes, gift cards and more!)
Did You Know?
- After the train depot shut down and before it became a museum, it once served as a bicycle shop and a lawn mower repair shop.
- The Plano station opened in June 1908 as part of the Texas Electric Railway.
- The Interurban Railway became essential for fans of baseball, as it allowed fans to travel to see game in different cities.
All Aboard…
Motorman Harold Larson has been a docent at the Interurban Railway Museum for 8 years. His favorite part of the job is giving tours on the car #360. He’s a total expert, and he always enjoys lunch.
Explore Plano 2017 Challenges > Interurban Railway Museum >The above post is sponsored content.
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