PRINCETON, W. Va. -The Princeton Railroad Museum is open almost every day of the year to provide visitors with a closer look at the history of this area. Saturday, however, marks a special milestone for the museum, the ten-year anniversary of its director joining the team.
Museum director, Patricia “Pat” Smith, says she loves history and worked as a guide for the Henry Flagler Museum in Florida. After enjoying an eleven-day retirement, she was approached by the then-city manager of Princeton to lead the Railroad Museum.
Smith says her biggest accomplishment over the past decade was getting the word out about the museum, with 660 people coming to the museum the year before she started, and more than 5,200 people coming last year, with most coming from out of state. She says her time with the museum brought revenue to the area, but she has benefited from her time here as well.
“I’m 82 years old now, and this keeps me going. A lot of 82-year-olds are sitting at home doing nothing, I’m down here or reading; I still read a lot about the Virginian. This was a special place because it was a main place for the Virginian Railroad…” says Smith.
If you’d like to see the Princeton Railroad Museum for yourself, they are open every day of the week (excluding holidays) from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm.
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