The National Capital Trolley Car Museum is in a field. It includes two attached brick barns. The main part of the museum houses a small model train collection and a gift shop. Incredibly disappointing if that was it (although my four-year old Caleb can watch model trains all day). But it is not!
With admission you get tickets to ride a working trolley car. It routes its way through the wooded area near the museum. Considering how much my boys love riding trains, streetcars and the like ... they loved it. We visited when it was having its Holly Trolleyfest. This meant that the boys could sit on Santa's lap, and Mrs Claus rode with us on the trolley ride.
After the trolley ride, there is a docent tour of one of the two barns. Worth waiting for, you get to see trolley cars in various stages of dilapidation. The second barn we were told isn't safe to visit (that is where the actual cars are refurbished). But that would have been fun, even if we were only able to peak our heads in.
The National Capital Trolley Car Museum had a major fire in 2003, which destroyed four cars, and is still re-cooperating. Eventually its collection will include more refurbished cars then the two that you can ride. But for now if you live in the Washington, DC area it is a worthwhile visit, if anything to support the maintenance and restoration of trolleys ... and if you have two little boys like us, to spend a pleasant afternoon.
Before going check the website to make sure the museum is open -- it has odd hours especially during the winter months.
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