The Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis Railroad Trail, Glenn Dale, Maryland

From 1908 to 1935, the Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis Railroad operated in the northeastern suburbs of Washington D.C. connecting the suburbs of Glenn Dale and Bowie to the cities of Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis.  The heyday of the railroad was during World War I.  The Bowie Race Track also brought many riders as they went to the watch horse races.  Sadly, like many short line railroads of the day, went in decline.  The Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis Railroad was no more.  The rails were taken up after the service ceased.

If you drive through the suburb of Glenn Dale in the U.S. state of Maryland, the only trains you will see will be on the old Pennsylvania Railroad line which is now part of the Amtrak Northeast Corridor and the railroad line the runs into the southern region of the state to ports on the Potomac River.  As for the Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis Railroad, the only thing that remains is the old railroad bed of which a section of has been made into the WB&A Trail, or the Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis Railroad Trail.

The WB&A Trail runs from a site near the old Glenn Dale Hospital (currently in ruins) off of Maryland Route 953 to the Bowie Race Track (also in ruins) on Race Track Road between Maryland Route 450 and Maryland Route 197.  The original power lines still run alongside the trail.  As you ride along, you can see where the railway connected the locals to the big cities.  You can get a glimpse of what the passengers saw as they rode the train as very little of the scenery has changed since the demise of the railroad.