SPENCER ó The N.C. Transportation Museum will host Girl Scout troops from across the state with “Girl Scout Day” Saturday.
Troops will have the opportunity to ride the on-site train, experience the N.C. Transportation Museum’s exhibits and earn their N.C. Transportation Museum patch.
“Girl Scout Day” at the N.C. Transportation Museum, now in its eighth year, is a unique experience for Girl Scouts, best represented by the N.C. Transportation Museum patch, which was created in 2005 by a Girl Scout and former N.C. Transportation Museum Gift Station employee, Valerie Wooten. As a member of Girl Scout Troop 1070, Wooten saw the opportunity to communicate a valuable part of North Carolina history. The patch was created as a Gold Award project with questions designed for Brownie Girl Scouts, Junior Girl Scouts or Cadet/Senior Scouts.
To be awarded the N.C. Transportation Museum patch, troops must tour the museum exhibits, including “Wagons, Wheels and Wings,” “Bumper to Bumper” and the Bob Julian Roundhouse. Scouts then answer a fact sheet related to museum exhibits. In completing these tasks, scouts will learn the history of transportation in North Carolina, from plank roads to train travel to automobiles and airplanes. The answer sheet requires scouts to think critically about what they have seen. Following train and turntable rides, scouts can pick up their N.C. Transportation Museum patch in the Gift Station.
The event typically draws 100-200 Girl Scout troops and their leaders throughout the Hornet’s Nest Council, based in Charlotte. Troops from the Raleigh area and across North Carolina have also attended “Girl Scout Day” events. A $10 fee includes the patch, materials and train and turntable rides. More information on the N.C. Transportation Museum patch can be found on the Girl Scouts Hornet’s Nest Web site, at www.hngirlscouts.org/images/upload/NC%20Transportation%20Museum.pdf.
The N.C. Transportation Museum, located in historic Spencer Shops, the former Southern Railway repair facility, is part of the Division of State Historic Sites, Department of Cultural Resources. The museum is located just off Interstate 85 at Exit 79 in Spencer.
Visit www.nctrans.org for more information. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is celebrating the 2009 theme of “Treasure N.C. Culture.”
For information on the Department of Cultural Resources, call 919-807-7385 or visit www.ncculture.com.