This twin-engine 1943 Douglas Aircraft product, the military version of the DC-3, is thought to have been used by the United States Army Air Force in the World War II to resupply troops the day after the invasion of Normandy on June 6, 1944. It is painted in camouflage with invasion stripes, which were placed on Allied aircraft used on D-Day to identify them so they would not be subject to friendly fire. The plane was agile and dependable, and could land and take off on comparatively short air fields. It earned the nickname “Gooney Bird” because its large, lumbering image mirrored that of the giant albatross birds, known for their endurance and ability to fly great distances, found on Midway Island in the Pacific. After the war, this plane was used in commercial passenger service in Nevada until it was reacquired by the military for use by the 131st Tactical Fighter Group of the Missouri Air National Guard for 22 years. Thus this C-47A is a World War II veteran, that towed gliders and delivered troops, equipment, and supplies to the 82nd Airborne Division just after dawn on the day after D-Day. Operation Hackensack took place on June 7, 1944, and pilot Martin Platt flew the U.S. Army Air Force Douglas Aircraft C-47A #N 3-15635 to support the Allied Forces. Hear more here.

The H.T. Pott was the first Missouri River towboat with a welded steel hull instead of a riveted hull. The vessel operated out of Kansas City, Missouri on the Missouri River.  It is named for Herman T. Pott (1895-1982), a distinguished river transportation executive and entrepreneur.  The groups of barges that are moved on the nation’s rivers are called “tows."  The boats that propel the barges are “towboats” even though they push the barges from the back instead of pulling them.  The H.T. Pott is 58 feet long and 15 feet wide, and it has a “draft” the amount of the hull below the water line of 6 feet. You can walk the decks of the H.T. Pott. Hear more here.

Lockheed T-33 US Air Force training aircraft. The T-33A was developed by modifying the P-80 jet which later became the “F-80 Shooting Star."  The fuselage of the P-80 was lengthened and a second seat was added which required the use of a larger engine. This design resulted in the T-33A.  Both propeller driven aircraft pilots and the new jet aircraft pilots were trained on the T-33A. The T-33A made its maiden flight in March of 1948.  Manufacture of this plane continued from 1948 to 1959.  The plane has served in the Air Forces of more than 30 countries becoming one of the most widely used trainers in history.

Quality wagons were built by Luedinghaus Wagon Company.

Pevely Dairy founded in the 1880s, was one of four large dairies that evolved from a group of small dairies located in St. Louis at the turn of the twentieth century.  Delivery of milk was made by horse-drawn wagons.  Milk was delivered in bottles with cream on top and a round piece of cardboard as a stopper.  Horses were so well trained on their route that they knew when to stop for a delivery.  As a publicity stunt the dairy purchased two trained zebras named Hans and Tanta from a circus and had them pull a dairy wagon. The museum has an original horse-drawn milk wagon that was originally owned by Pevely Dairy. Here is a video of a zebra-drawn milk delivery.

The Buffalo-Springfield Roller Co. of Springfield, Ohio, manufactured this vintage three-wheel steam roller. The company formed as a merger of the Buffalo Pitts Co. and the Kelly-Springfield Road Roller Co. (before to 1902 known as the O.S. Kelly Co.) Steam rollers of this sort were used to pave Fifth Avenue in New York City (see Buffalo-Springfield Roller Co. documentation).

Velocipede is French for "swift-footed." Handcar used in 19th and early 20th centuries. The most common early handcar was the four-wheel handcar which weighed about 600 lbs. In addition, there was a far lighter 125-150 pound style of handcar called a velocipede or Irish Mail which was used by some railroads. The three-wheel velocipede could carry one or two people over the rail lines to perform short errands.  It could attain a speed of up to 12 mph. The actual inventor of this style handcar is unknown, but George S. Sheffield has been generally credited with the invention in 1877. This style of handcar was manufactured until approximately 1947.

Mail wagon

The Cushman Eagle was an attempt to copy real motorcycle design and it was by far Cushman’s most successful model. The 318CC 8 horsepower motor delivered top speed of nearly 50 MPH. The chrome models are unique because they were made almost exclusively for Shriners to ride in parades and other special events. This scooter was donated in 1987 by the Daniel Hartnett Family.

In the mid-1950s, advancements in helicopter technology made a vehicle like this possible. At the end of the Korean War, the U.S. Navy was looking for a small sized helicopter that could be dropped to downed pilots stranded behind enemy lines. Gyrodyne Company of America was awarded the contract and built prototypes to demonstrate their new invention. Three different engines were experimented with over the next few years and this model is equipped with a Porsche 4-cylinder internal combustion engine. Demand by the Navy soon switched to radio-controlled pilotless drones and in 1964 all XRON Rotorcycle work ceased. Allan Barklage donated this Rotorcycle to the museum in 1984. Number built 10 Max Speed 78 mph Cruise Speed 60 mph

St. Louis-based Dynacycle invented manufactured bike kits and motorbikes. A gasoline motor could be attached to any balloon-tired bicycle in place of the crank and peddles and then mounted to the frame. The company claimed to have the smoothest ride of all bike motors on the market due to its Dynamount suspension system, which included rubber rings in the crank housing. The four horsepower engine delivered speeds of up to 45 miles per hour. This bike has a custom-built side cart. It was used by a local grocery store to deliver goods to its customers. Approximately 200 bikes and kits were sold and it is believed only about 30 are still in existence.

Built by Austin-Western Company, this gasoline-powered road roller shows the transition from the earlier steam-powered roller design to internal combustion power. This equipment was used to compress the soil and crushed rock to form a solid roadbed. Donated to TNMOT in 1981 by Maplewood Construction Company

Grader was used in and donated by Tower Grove Park, which is a municipal park in the city of St. Louis, Missouri. Most of Tower Grove Park land was donated to the city by Henry Shaw in 1868. It is on 289 acres adjacent to the Missouri Botanical Garden, another of Shaw's legacies. It extends 1.6 miles from west to east, between Kingshighway Boulevard and Grand Boulevard. It is bordered on the north by Magnolia Avenue and on the south by Arsenal Street. Donated October 4, 2018, to TNMOT Western Wheeled Scraper

A handcar is a railroad car powered by its passengers, or by people pushing the car from behind. It is mostly used as a maintenance of way or mining car. This particular handcar was used on the Mississippi Rive & Bonne Terre Railway.

Tomorrow’s transportation has arrived at The National Museum of Transportation (TNMOT).  Direct from the Smithsonian Institution’s Futures Exhibit, The Virgin Hyperloop XP-2 Pegasus Pod, designed by Bjarke Ingels Group and Kilo Design, is at TNMOT. Come marvel at Virgin Hyperloop’s Pegasus pod. With speeds of up to 670 miles per hour, Hyperloop could be the first potential leap forward in mobility in a century. In late 2020 Virgin Hyperloop made it one step closer to reality, and made global headlines, when its first passengers completed a successful trial run of a technology that has long been a staple of science fiction. Distances that once took months to travel, and now take hours, will require just minutes.

This 1917 Indian Motorcycle Powerplus was donated to the Museum in 2023 by a couple in Utah who used to ride motorcycles with actor Steve McQueen. An Indian motorcycle prototype was built in 1901, and Indian cycles were the industry leader until World War I, when the Hendee Manufacturing Company, which produced Indian motorcycles, sold most of its Powerplus line to the U.S. military.

This 1957 Cruisers ski boat gives a nod to a century of water skiing, a sport begun in 1922. Cruisers, Inc. started manufacturing wooden boats in 1953 in Oconto, Wisconsin.