Sails to Rails Museum at Flagler Station in Key West, FL

Sails to Rails at Flagler Station, Key West's newest museum, takes visitors on a journey through the age of sail, a time when tall ships plied the treacherous waters of the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico from the 1500s to early 1900s and continue into the era of Henry Flagler's Overseas Railway in the early part of the century. Located in the historic Key West district at 901 Caroline Street, this state-of-the-art museum features hands-on exhibits, raw footage, unique artifacts, and the only scale model of Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas.

As guests travel through this interactive timeline of Key West history, they will discover the history of sponging, turtling, fishing, wrecking, cigar making, and tourism that put Key West on the map. Guests can lift a genuine silver bar from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha that sank full of gold, silver, and emeralds during a hurricane off of Key West in 1522. Get to know Henry Flagler, John D. Rockefeller's partner in Standard Oil, in the original paymaster's railway car from the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway. Inside the Maggie Atwell House, the only remaining wooden structure built by the FEC, learn about the backbreaking work of building the railroad over the open ocean and the mosquito-infested mangrove swamps of the Florida Keys.

For the younger set, the museum offers an area full of hands-on activities, picture-taking opportunities, and the National Park Service Junior Ranger Program.

Highlights:

Discover the Age of Sail in the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and the Florida Keys

View a diorama of Fort Jefferson National Park

Lift a genuine silver bar from the Spanish galleon Nuestra Señora de Atocha

Enjoy video presentations on the Overseas Railroad

Step back in history 500 years

Hands-on, immersive activities for children and adults

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