The depot houses the large collection of railroad lanterns, railroad china, and the nation's largest railroad paperweight collection.[citation needed] Exhibits in the museum illustrate the items of material culture that people encountered in their day-to-day activities with the railroads and how technology changed over time.
The museum is housed in the third depot to be built in the village. Built from sandstone quarried nearby, this building was constructed between 1914 and 1915 on the foundation of the second depot, which had previously been moved off the site to serve as a personal residence.
In 1958, a large storm tore through western Wisconsin, producing many tornadoes, one of which hit the freighthouse on the depot's west side. The wall of the women's waiting room was rebuilt from the rubble, but the freight house was never restored.
