The N.C. Transportation Museum is a historic site, once home to Southern Railway's largest steam locomotive repair facility in the southeast, and a museum featuring all types of transportation history – railroading, automotive, aviation, and more.

Historic structures include Barber Junction Depot, an authentic train station built in 1898 that serves as the museum's Visitor Center. The Bob Julian Roundhouse is the largest remaining roundhouse in North America, and is home to locomotives, passenger rail cars, and a full-size replica Wright Flyer. The massive Back Shop, where steam locomotives were once completely overhauled, now houses rail cars of the past, antique automobiles, fire trucks, and the restoration of the Piedmont Airlines' Potomac Pacemaker DC-3. The Flue Shop houses the museum's Bumper to Bumper automotive exhibit.