Railroad Museum tracks history, progress

October 15, 2024

by Benita Fuzzell

Darren Doss of Union City has had a near lifelong fascination with trains.

He currently works as an engineer out of Memphis for Canadian National Railroad, and has made his living on the tracks for the past 22 years.

Since the age of 12, when his father gifted him with a model train set, his love of trains, and all that goes with them, has come to be a source of joy for Doss, as he has also come to be quite a collector of Railroad memorabilia and artifacts.

When James “Rabbit” Cruce called him one afternoon with a proposition, given his hobby and way of life, Doss knew it was an offer he could not refuse.

Cruce, a longtime railroad man himself, and caretaker of the Twin Cities Railroad Museum, located in the South Fulton Municipal Complex, had reached a point in his life which made him realize he could no longer take care of the treasures collected and donated for many years, each item in the museum significant to the history of the Twin cities of Fulton and South Fulton.

The rails served as arteries, which pumped life into the community, provided jobs and even served as the foundation of a claim to fame, when bananas shipped by rail from South America stopped in Fulton for the icing down process, and thus seized the opportunity to grab the title of “Banana Capital” of the world.

In turn, that designation gave birth to the Banana Festival, still celebrated each September.

“Rabbit” Cruce dedicated his life, after retirement, to the museum and loved to talk to anyone who would listen, about his time riding the rails upon the Illinois Central line.

He was also a staunch advocate for railroad safety, and schooled many local students on the dangers of improper approach to rail yards and crossings.

But with age, the passing of his wife, and the decision to move from his South Fulton home, to live with his daughter and son-in-law out of state, Cruce contacted Doss and asked if he would be interested in taking on the job of railroad museum overseer.

“It’s yours! That’s what he told me,” said Doss.

Doss is just getting his feet wet, so to speak, at the museum and credits another railroad enthusiast, Rubert Ainley, with helping him transition into his new role.

Ainley, who has also moved out of the Twin Cities community, still comes to the museum each Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon, to sit in one of the comfortable recliners, arranged in a semi-circle where “Rabbit” once engaged in hours of railroad talk with others who shared his passion.

Doss said there is a board which provides direction regarding the museum, in the otherwise unused space which is provided by the city at no cost to the museum. He said Joyce Gray, South Fulton’s City Manager has been a great source of encouragement and support for the continuation of the museum’s operations.

Retired railroad employee John “Pete” Algee, who serves on the board, has given Doss his support, to carry on the role established by Cruce.

Doss has spent some afternoons rearranging the huge space dedicated to the museum, to showcase all the items donated or on loan, including medallions encased in stone which the Illinois Central Railroad distributed throughout stops along the railway during its 1951 Centennial celebration. The stone had previously been stationed at the former Fulton Woman’s Club building on Walnut Street.

Small signs, refurbished by another railroad enthusiast, Bruce Pierce, are on display, and detailed black and white photographs are arranged in a frames collage, showcasing the design of the Fulton railroad yard, including the roundhouse. Those photographs, Doss said, were gifted by the late Brent Ingrum, a retired railroad man, but originated from his father, the late Jake Ingrum, who also worked for the railroad.

Another interesting artifact is a unique heater, which also played a part in the banana distribution process at the local railroad yard.

“Rabbit told me, that it wasn’t just that the bananas were iced down here, before they were sent out all over the country. There were also times that they actually used these heaters, to warm them up, too,” Doss said, as he pointed toward one on display.

There is an informative and historical exhibit facilitated by Dr. Linda Holderness Bradford, depicting the African American Illinois Central workers of the historic Fulton Railroad Station.

Motor cars, used for track maintenance have their place in the museum, each painstakingly restored from 1942, 1952 and 1962.

A new addition to the museum, and one that will not be completed overnight by any means, will be a project to be coordinated by a group, Ken-Tenn Model Railroaders. This group, consisting of Brent Callicut of Union City, Campbell Rice of Union City, Dee Taylor of Union City and Art Chivers of Pleasant Hill, Tenn., will now meet at the Twin Cities Railroad Museum on the first Sunday of each month at 2 p.m.

When they gather, in addition to talking shop about the railroad, they will begin a labor of love to create an accurate modular display of the rail line encompassing from Fulton to Obion, from Fulton to Martin, from Rives to Union City, from Union City, across to Martin.

They plan to produce the replica as close as possible to the real life path forged by long-ago locomotives, through small communities and local landscapes.

The four men in the group made sure to credit the late John Bell, a retired Union City postman, with cultivating their love of trains.

They said Bell had an amazing railway model constructed in his attic and always provided a welcoming opportunity for youth to experience all aspects, scaled to size, of railroad operations.

Doss said he wants to be able to establish regular hours for the railroad museum to be open, however he said he, as well as Rubert Ainley, would be happy to arrange a time for families or groups to come and experience a hands-on lesson of the railroad’s history.

Donations and “on loan” items will continue to be accepted for display, Doss said.

Plans are to eventually establish a facebook page for the museum, for more convenient contacts.