The Freight House ( Across the parking lot from the Museum.) was built in 1925 by the Nashville, Chattanooga, and St. Louis Railway. The portion of the NC & St L, which runs from Bruceton, Tennessee to Paducah, was originally the Paducah, Tennessee, and Alabama Railway In 1895, the PT & A was acquired by the Louisville & Nashville Railway, and in 1895 was leased by the L & N back to its subsidiary, the NC & St L.
In 1917 the NC & St L Railway and the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railway jointly constructed a rail line and a double track bridge between Paducah and Metropolis. The bridge (which is listed by the Encyclopedia Britannica as the world’s longest simple truss bridge) made a gateway connection between the NC & St L in the south and the CB & Q or Burlington Route for the north and west. Later; the Illinois Central (Now Canadian national) bought a third interest, in the bridge and is now the primary user.
While the freight house was built in 1925, plans were being made to extend this connection to include links with the Big Four, (part of the New York Central System) and other railroads. As a result, the Paducah freight house was constructed to handle a large volume of business and included a Division Superintendent’s Office on the second floor in addition to the local freight office and warehouse on the first floor.
