You might not think of trains when you think of art...but when you hear the detail that went in to this piece of history, you'll agree it's a masterpiece.

Topekan "Rennie" Nieder was a railroad man at heart...so much he built an exact one and one half replica of a steam engine.

"He worked for Santa Fe and he built the train, and his train was operational in his back yard from 1985 to 2000," explains Bette Allen, executive director at the Great Overland Station.

That's right, Neider built this real working steam engine that topeka kids could ride for fifteen years.

When Neider passed away in 2001, his family put the train in storage. Then they decided the train belonged where more people could enjoy it, at one of Nieder's favorite places, Great Overland Station.

"So of course, we jumped on it, because being a steam engine, it fits in with the train station perfectly."

So in may, they used semi trucks to haul the thousand pound engine and all nine cars back to topeka from arkansas, where Neider's family kept it.

And it's been on display ever since as a piece of history. "You'll never see these again and to give kids the chance to get up close and see what a real steam engine looks like."

What makes this a work of art is the detail down to every last rivet, this replica is exact, with all the Bells and Whistles.

"We've had a few people come in and say they rode the train."

A fitting place for something that rode through topeka's railroad history.

You can stop by great overland station and see this amazing train. They're open Tuesdays through Saturdays from 10 am to 4 pm. You can also check out Santa with the kids on Sunday, December 16th!