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How many of you have ever heard of the Washington D.C. suburb known as Burke, Virginia? Outside of the D.C. region, very few have heard of this place as it is often overshadowed by the more famous suburbs of Alexandria, Arlington, and Manassas. It was almost the site of Washington’s second airport. The site originally chosen is now a huge man-made lake. The town is named after Silas Burke.
Who was Silas Burke?
Silas Burke was many things, but the one important thing was that he was the director of the Orange and Alexandria Railroad. He donated some of his property to allow the railroad to be built through the area. A train station was built, and it was called Burke Station. While in use, it was the site of a few American Civil War skirmishes to include a raid by Confederate General J. E. B. Stuart.
Along with the Civil War, the town was also the site of a racetrack. It was to be a resort town with big hotels. Today, the original Burke Station is located in a nearby community. What was once the Orange and Alexandria Railroad is now owned by the Norfolk Southern Railway. The only trains that stop in Burke is the Virginia Railway Express which takes commuters to Union Station in Washington D.C.
Today, Burke is mostly homes, strip malls, and a few parks. The rebuilt Silas House is located at a senior center on Burke Lake Road. As you drive around, it does not look like a railroad town, but it was a man who allowed the railroad to shape the region.
The photo of Burke Station is a photo on display at the Fairfax Station Railroad Museum in Fairfax Station, Virginia.
How many of you have ever heard of the beach town of Lewes in the U.S. state of Delaware? It is a very popular town to many in the eastern United States of America particularly to those in the mid-Atlantic states. It is a town located where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. Originally settled by Dutch settlers it is a popular vacation town with visitors from New York City, New York, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Baltimore, Maryland, Washington D.C. and many other cities in the region. Along with a charming downtown, the town is famous for the Cape May-Lewes Ferry that takes travelers between Lewes and the famous town of Cape May in the U.S. state of New Jersey across the Delaware Bay. It is also where you will find Cape Henlopen. What is special about Cape Henlopen? It was where Fort Miles was erected to defend the entrance to Delaware Bay from a sea attack. Today, it is a park with hiking trails with views of the Atlantic Ocean, and it has great beaches too. It is also where you can see the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse. Why visit Lewes, Delaware? It is a nice charming historic town that you will fall in love with.
Some of you are saying, “This is cool. This is great. You have a nice town settled by the Dutch that is at the point where the Delaware Bay goes into the Atlantic Ocean. This is probably a very beautiful town. There is a very big problem. It is not a railroad town. Therefore, I will not be taking a vacation in this town.”
Why visit Lewes, Delaware? It is not a railroad town. The only railroad line today is a spur line that runs from the main line that runs along the Delmarva Peninsula. In the early part of the twentieth century, it was… a railroad hub.
As you stroll through the town of Lewes, Delaware, you see charming historic structures. You see the Lightship Overalls, which is a floating lighthouse, and it is open for tours. You have the canal. Then you see the Junction and Breakwater Trail.
Some of you are saying, “Interesting. You have a trail at a junction that breaks water. How do you break water?”
What is the Junction and Breakwater Trail? It is a rail trail that gets it name from the Junction and Breakwater Railroad that ran south to the beach town of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. It was later taken over by the Pennsylvania Railroad and, later, the Penn Central Railroad who abandoned the railroad line in the 1970’s.
Some of you are saying, “Well. Is that it?”
Nope.
This brings us to the public library. What is special about the Lewes Public Library? This will give you a reason to ‘book’ a trip to Lewes, Delaware.
The Lewes Public Library was built on the site of the old train station. Yes, Lewes was once a passenger railroad hub with a train station with passengers arriving from Philadelphia, New York City, Washington, and Baltimore. A replica train station was built in its place. Along with the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Delaware Coast Line Railroad and the Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware Railroad served the station. The old railroad bed is now the Georgetown-Lewes Trail. (There are plans to extend the trail to Georgetown, Delaware and connect to a rail trail that goes to Love Point, Maryland, a point just north of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge on the east coast of the Chesapeake Bay where passengers from Baltimore, Maryland and Washington D.C. arrived by ferry to ride the train to Lewes. If you need another reason to visit the Lewes Public Library, you can see an old, refurbished caboose and coal car from the Pennsylvania Railroad next to the trail.
Lewes, Delaware is located on the Delaware Coast where the Delaware Bay meets the Atlantic Ocean. U.S. Route 9 is the only major route in the town and crosses the Delaware Bay by way of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. The main route is Delaware Route 1 which runs north to Interstate 95 in Wilmington. Delaware Route 404 runs west to U.S. Routes 13 and 50.
Lewes, Delaware may no longer be a railroad town, but it has not forgotten its railroad heritage. When you stroll around, you will see why many make their journey here.
The U.S. state of Maryland is the state where the Star Spangled Banner was written. It was the state that donated the land that would become the District of Columbia and the capital of the United States of America. It was where the first railroad in the Western Hemisphere began. There is so much to this state. It is where you will find the small town of Mount Airy. Located in the Washington-Baltimore Metropolitan region, it is a town that pales in comparison to the more famous towns of nearby Frederick, Annapolis, Baltimore, Hagerstown, Ocean City, and Cumberland. In this town, you will find Watkins Park. Watkins Park? Some of the D.C. area locals will confuse this park with Watkins Park located in the historic town of Upper Marlboro, but this is a different park with the same name. What is special about Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland? It is a park with picnic tables with shelters and grills, softball and baseball fields plus soccer fields, a playground, and courts for basketball, tennis, and volleyball. It is a park for the neighborhood. Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland is a place where you can relax and enjoy.
Some of you are saying, “This is very interesting. You have two parks in Maryland with the same name. There is a big problem with this park. What is the problem? There is no railroad here. Therefore, I will not be ‘parked’ here.”
Why visit Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland? Let us begin in the year 1827.
What happened in 1827? Well, a whole lot of things. Let us go to the city of Baltimore. The day was February 27. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was born. The first leg of the railroad ran east from the Mount Clare Station to the town of Ellicott Mills. (The town is called Ellicott City today, and the oldest surviving train station in the United States of America is here. It is no longer an active train station, but it is open as a museum.) The railroad went west from here. It went to the town of Mount Airy, Maryland. Many years later, the railroad line was relocated south, and the railroad no longer served the town of Mount Airy.
This brings us to Watkins Park.
Yes, it is a park that has picnic tables, ball fields, and a playground just like any other neighborhood park. What is special about this park? Another feature of this park is that it has a nature trail.
Some of you are saying, “Big deal! Many parks have nature trails.”
That is true, but this one is very special. How special? It is only a mile long. Most of it is paved with a boardwalk. It begins at Watkins Park. You walk the trail to the end, and you see something amazing. What do you see that is amazing? You see the old Mount Airy Train Station. (The train station is now a museum.)
Some of you are saying, “That is nice that you see an old train station on the trail, but that is nothing special.”
Well, as you walk along the trail, you notice something that looks like a railroad cut. Ladies and gentlemen, the trail was part of the original Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Line that ran between Baltimore and the small town of Point of Rocks. (The old train station at Point of Rocks was on a postal stamp, and it still stands today.)
As you can see, Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland is a local park that holds a piece of railroad history.
Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland is located at 615 Center Street in, of course, Mount Airy, Maryland. It is right off of Maryland Route 27 and north of Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 40. The park is open from sunrise to sunset, and the trail is accessible to wheelchairs.
The next time you hear about Watkins Park in Mount Airy, Maryland, please do not confuse it with the park in Upper Marlboro. Think of it as a simple neighborhood park with a railroad past.
Many people have heard of the Battle of Antietam. Also known as the Battle of Sharpsburg, it was one of the largest battles in the American Civil War. Unlike the other major battles of Manassas and Gettysburg, the Battle of Antietam, named after Antietam Creek, was the largest battle of the American Civil War where the railroad did not play a role in the battle. After the war, family members who came to reclaim the bodies of their loved ones had to either travel to Hagerstown or to Keedysville and then traveled by horse and buggy to Sharpsburg. In 1877, the Shenandoah Valley Railroad came to Sharpsburg bringing railroad service to the town. The town grew around the railroad as people travel by train to visit the battlefield. A small train station was built west of the town along the Shepherdstown Pike (present day Maryland Route 34), but it was destroyed by fire in 1910.
In 1911, Antietam Station was built to accommodate the many visitors to the battlefield as well as accommodate farmers who wanted to ship their produce by the train. When to automobile became a more common way to travel, the station played less of a role to the town. The station was sold to a private person. It was going to be demolished, but it was saved by local foundations. In 1997, it became to home of the Hagerstown Model Railroad Museum.
Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute. This is Sharpsburg. How can it be the home of a model railroad from Hagerstown?”
That is a very good question.
It is called the Hagerstown Model Railroad Museum because it was originally in Hagerstown, Maryland and was originally called the Hagerstown Model Engineering Society in 1937. Oh, it is the fourth oldest model railroad club in the United States of America. They first met in a local hobby shop. They met in other locations before they accepted an offer to be housed in the old Antietam Station.
Today, as you drive along Maryland Route 34 between Sharpsburg towards Shepherdstown, West Virginia, you can see the old Antietam Station with the old railroad line with Norfolk Southern Railway trains passing by… but not stopping. What looks like a lonely train holds model train displays and lots of history. It is located at 17230 Shepherdstown Pike (Maryland Route 34) west of the town. You can go to https://antietamstation.com/ to get information about their open houses and to read more about the history of the station and about the Hagerstown Model Railroad Club.
How many of you have ever heard of the small town of Seymour in the U.S. state of Indiana? Very few people have. The state has more famous cities and towns like the state capital Indianapolis, the home of the Indianapolis 500, and South Bend, the home of the University of Notre Dame, and Bloomington, the home of the University of Indiana. What about Seymour? It is where John Cougar Mellencamp, a famous rock-n-roll musician was born. (His boyhood home remains but is not It was the home of Katie Stam. Who is Katie Stam? She just happened to be Miss Indiana in 2008 and Miss America in 2009. Then you have Colonel Harland Sanders. Who is Colonel Harland Sanders? He was not born here, but he had family in town making him a frequent visitor. His claim to fame was the fact that he happened to be the man where the phrase ‘finger lickin’ good’ came about. Yep! He is famous for his Kentucky Fried Chicken. Seymour was also the home of Freeman Army Airfield, the first helicopter airfield in the United States of America. (It is a civilian airport today.) For many, Seymour, Indiana is a very special town.
Some of you are saying, “Wow! John Cougar Mellencamp was born here. I wonder if he met Jack and Diane here. It is probably a great town. The problem is that it is not a railroad town. Therefore, I will not be ‘crumblin’ down at the wall’ here.”
Ladies and gentlemen, you are absolutely wrong. How are you wrong?
As you drive into the town along U.S. Route 50, the very first thing you will see are railroads. The railroad played a big role in the town’s history. It is called the ‘Crossroads of Southern Indiana’ because of the railroad as an east west route, originally built by the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad connecting Cincinnati, Ohio and Saint Louis, Missouri, and a south north route, originally built by the Jefferson, Madison, and Indianapolis Railroad connecting Louisville, Kentucky with the Indiana capital of Indianapolis, passes through this town. The railroad lines were later taken over by the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. Today, you will see Chessie Seaboard Transportation trains (CSX for short) roll along these railroad lines.
Being the ‘Crossroads of Southern Indiana’, the railroad played a big role in the American Civil War. Due to the access the two big cities in the region, the Union Army set up a camp here, and the camp sent supplies by the railroad to regiments in the region.
If that is not enough, the town was the site of a railroad robbery. There have been many railroad robberies in the early years of railroading, but in Seymour, it was the site of the first robbery of a moving train. The Reno Gang robbed the Adams Express on the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad. Some of the gang members were caught and hanged.
Is that it? No. It was the site of a railroad strike in 1876. On October 22, 1908, William Howard Taft campaigned in his running for the United Stated President from the rear of a train. Weeks later, he was elected as the President of the United States of America.
The town of Seymour, Indiana is located in the southern region of Indiana east of Interstate 65 and U.S. Route 31 on U.S. Route 50. The town may not be famous, but the railroad played a famous role in the town. You may not meet Jack and Diane, but you may see a CSX train roll through.
The town of Hollidaysburg in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania is a suburb of Altoona, the city famous for the World Famous Horseshoe Curve. Hollidaysburg is also the home of the Everett Railroad. Not far from the Everett Railroad is a park called the Canal Basin Park. What is the Canal Basin Park?
Some of you are saying, “Well, it is a park designed around a canal basin.”
You are correct. Well, you are mostly correct. The park was designed around an old canal basin of the Pennsylvania Main Line Canal. Canal basins was an area where boats would wait until the canal channel was cleared, and then they continued on. The canal, like many of the old canals, was destroyed by flooding. Today, the Canal Basin Park consists of the remains of the basin, a replica canal lock, and a museum housed in an old Victorian home. The Canal Basin Park is a site that preserves American history.
Some of you are saying, “This is great. They take an old canal basin and build a park around it. There is a problem. This is not a railroad site. Therefore, you will not see me here.”
So why visit the Canal Basin Park in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania?
The Pennsylvania Main Line Canal was one of many canals built to allow boats to bring goods from the ocean port cities to the inland cities and towns. Each canal was built with a channel wide enough for a boat that was pulled by either mules or horses through the channels and the canal locks which allowed the boats to climb different elevations along the landscape. The Pennsylvania Main Line Canal was built connect the cities of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. Along these canals, small towns were erected.
Then they came to the Allegheny Mountains. How in the world are you going to build a canal over the high mountain range.
This brings us to Canal Basin Park. Yes, it was a basin where boats waited. It was not for the channel to be clear of boat. It was for the boats to be placed on a flatcar on a train. It was here in Hollidaysburg where the canal boats were put on the Allegheny Portage Railroad. The Pennsylvania Main Line Canal used the Allegheny Portage Railroad to carry the canal cars over the mountain range and then placed back into another canal basin where it continued along its way.
You see. You think that Canal Basin Park is about boats. It is, but it is boats combined with the railroad.
Canal Basin Park is located at 101 Canal Street in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. It is a short drive from U.S. Route 22 and the Everett Railroad. The park is open from sunrise to sunset.
Next time you are in Hollidaysburg and riding the Everett Railroad, take a little time to visit Canal Basin Park. The boats and the railroad are long gone, but you can see a place where American history took place.
The Declaration of Independence has been signed, and the United States of America is a new nation. People come on ships across the Atlantic Ocean to arrive in the port cities to live in the new nation, but when they arrive, some stay along the Atlantic Coast, but some decide to go farther inland. They first travel by the famous horse and wagon, but then came the canals allowing boats to go farther inland. Then came the railroad. It was a race between the railroad and the canals to bring people west from the coast. The kept building west… but then they came to the Allegheny Mountains. Part of the Appalachian Mountain Range, the Allegheny Mountains became a big barrier to transportation. The railroad and the canals did have some success building tunnels and curves. In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, they came up with a unique idea, and there was nothing like it anywhere in the world.
The Allegheny Portage Railroad was born. What was the Allegheny Portage Railroad?
The Allegheny Portage Railroad was not the first railroad in the United States of America, but it was the first railroad to do something that the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad were not the first to do. It was the first railroad to cross the Allegheny Mountains. Yes, it was the very first railroad to take goods from the ports of the Atlantic Ocean to the inland of the United States.
Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute. We have heard about the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. We have heard of the Pennsylvania Railroad. We have heard of the New York Central System Railroad. We have never heard of the Allegheny Portage Railroad.”
The Allegheny Portage Railroad had a unique purpose. What was its purpose? The Allegheny Portage Railroad was actually part of a canal system.
Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute. It is called the Allegheny Portage Railroad. How can it be part of a canal?”
That is a great question. As mentioned, it was a unique railroad. How? Unlike the major railroads that focused on getting passengers and goods from the coast to the midland, the Allegheny Portage Railroad had a special kind of cargo.
The Allegheny Portage Railroad was only thirty-six miles long. It began in the canal town of Hollidaysburg on the east side of the mountains and went up a steep grade over the ridge and then continued on the west side of the mountain range to the city of Johnstown.
Some of you are saying, “Well, that is not very far. The big railroads went from Boston, Massachusetts, New York City, New York, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Baltimore, Maryland to Buffalo, New York, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Cleveland, Ohio and Columbus, Ohio.”
That is true, but, in 1834, the Allegheny Portage Railroad was a unique railroad. There were many canals still in service. The state of Pennsylvania had its own canal system that would transport goods from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. The canals were operable on hills and flat land, but they were not operable over mountain ranges.
A canal boat would arrive in Hollidaysburg. From there, it was loaded onto the Allegheny Portage Railroad. The train, which consisted of two or three flatbed railroad cars, were they pulled along the rails by a pulley system that was built at the top on the mountain ridge. It was then lowered on the other side of the mountain ridge by the same pulley system to Johnstown. In Johnstown, the boats were taken off of the railroad cars and put into a canal, and the boats continued to Pittsburgh and points west. For canal boats going from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia, the reverse process was done.
Sadly, the Allegheny Railroad only ran from 1834 to 1854.
Some of you are saying, “I bet that the railroad is long gone to history and that the railroad bed is long gone and overgrown.”
Nope.
Welcome to the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site. The Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site preserves the history and the site of the pulley railroad system. The site, owned and operated by the National Park Service, consists of the Visitor Center which houses a museum that shows the working of the railroad and how the railroad was built and how it operated. There is also a replica of the Number 6 Engine House where the pulley system pulled the train up the mountainside and lowered the trains on the other side. You can also visit the Lemon House. No, it is not made from actual lemons. It served as a tavern for those using the railroad. There are also hiking trails along the old railroad bed.
The Allegheny Portage Railroad Historic Site is located at 110 Federal Park Road in Gallitzin, Pennsylvania just off of U.S. Route 22. It is open year round from 9:00am to 5:00pm. (Closed on Wednesday and Thursday.) Parking is on site. The Visitor Center, the Engine House, and the Lemon House are wheelchair accessible, but the hiking trails are not. The great part is that there is no admission fee to visit the site. You can get more information about at Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site (U.S. National Park Service).
The next time you are in Altoona, Pennsylvania, you can see the World-Famous Horseshoe Curve. You can see the National Railroaders Memorial Museum. You can ride the Everett Railroad. You can see the Gallitzin Tunnels. The Allegheny Portage Railroad Historic Site is another great reason to visit Altoona. It is truly a railroad site unlike any other in the world.
The U.S. state of Maryland is one of the original states in the United States of America. It was the state that donated the land that would become the Nation’s Capital. It is where the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ the National Anthem, was written. It was where a woman named Harriet Tubman created ‘The Underground Railroad’, an escape network for enslaved people in slave states to escape to the free states in the north, and this escape network is used in other parts of the world today. It is where the first balloon flight took place, and the oldest continuously operating airport in the world is located here. The largest estuary in the United States of America divides the state. The oldest Catholic church is also here. The eastern end of ‘The National Road’, is located here. The first tracks of the railroad were laid in this state. The Western Maryland Railway Locomotive Number 1309, the largest operating locomotive in the world that was originally owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, pulls excursion trains out of Cumberland. You have the coastline at the east end. You have the plains east of the Chesapeake Bay. You have the rolling hills west and north of the state with the mountains at the western end.
You then have a forgotten part of the state known as Southern Maryland. The region on the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay south of Annapolis, the State Capitol, is a region not too many people know about. It is the home of Point Lookout where the Point Lookout Lighthouse is one of the most haunted lighthouses in the world. The Patuxent Naval Air Station has one of the longest airport runways in the world being one of the few runways where the space shuttle could land. The Patuxent River, sadly, was used by the British during the War of 1812 as they sailed up to a town called Upper Marlboro and then marched on to Washington D.C. to burn the city. The state was also settled down here, and it is where Saint Mary’s City, one of the oldest cities in the United States of America, is located.
You see all of this about Southern Maryland, but you wonder anything about the railroad. Well, there is some railroad history in the region of this state. Because of the Chesapeake Bay and the wideness of the Potomac River south of Washington D.C., most of the railroad lines ended here. The defunct Chesapeake Beach Railway brought vacationers from Washington D.C. to the then resort town of Chesapeake Beach, Maryland. Sadly, the tracks are gone, and much of the railroad bed is on private property. The old train station in Chesapeake Beach is the only surviving train station on that line, and it is a museum today.
There is another railroad line that went south from the town of Bowie. It was originally built by the Baltimore and Potomac Railroad, and it is owned by Chessie Seaboard Transportation (CSX) today. It connects with the Amtrak line in Bowie and winds its way through the southern region of the state to a coal plant on the Potomac River. One of the towns it passes through is the town of La Plata. What is special about La Plata? Well, it is the home of the only surviving train station on the line. Today, that train station is now a museum.
Some of you are saying, “This is nice. The train station is still there. It is not a major railroad line. Why do they not demolish the train station?”
La Plata, like many small towns in the railroad era, owes must of its history to the railroad. Before the automobile, the railroad was the fastest mode of transportation. Sure. It took a long while to ride the train to Washington D.C. and points south, but it played a major role in the development of the town. When you visit the old train station during its opening hours, you will see model trains, and you will see many photos of the railroad in the town. This includes photos of passenger trains that served the station. You can also see some of the old schedules.
Need a reason to visit Southern Maryland? The old train station in La Plata, Maryland, it a good reason. It really tells the story of the railroad in the region.
The Old Train Station is located at 101 Kent Avenue just north of Maryland Route 6 and less than one mile west of U.S. Route 301. Admission is free, but they could use your donations to keep the museum open for many years to come. The museum is owned by the town of La Plata and run by volunteers. Parking is on site, and the station is wheelchair accessible. You can get information on the opening hours on their Facebook page and on their website at Facilities • La Plata Train Station Museum.
The next time you think of the state of Maryland, think of a small southern town of La Plata. It is a town that keep the history of the railroad in the region alive.
In the early years of the United States of America, whaling was a way of life. What is whaling? Men would step aboard ships, and they would head out to sea. Why? They were hunting whales. They would take harpoons and throw them at the whales. (Harpoons are basically a specific kind of spear mainly used to pierce the thick skin of animals.) The whales were pulled onto the ship, and they were processed at sea and turned into lubrication and oil used for lighting. Back in the day, it was the main source of income particularly in the New England States. The story of Moby Dick is a story that was inspired by the whaling industry. (Moby Dick was the name of a fictional whale.) Today, the hunting of whales has been banned in the United States of America. (It is still legal in some countries but with limitations.) Although the whaling industry is no more, you can learn more about the industry at the New Bedford Whaling Museum in the city of New Bedford in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. In the heyday of the whaling industry, New Bedford was an international port city. Today, you can see the waterways where the whalers (whale hunters) would depart and return each day. The New Bedford Whaling Museum tells the story of the whalers, the industry, and the life of a whaling town.
Some of you are saying, “Wow! This is great. There is a museum that is dedicated to whaling. I do have a problem with this museum. What is the problem? This is a whaling museum, not a railroad museum. Therefore, I will not have a whale of a time visiting this place.”
You do have a point. It is called the New Bedford Whaling Museum. It is about the whaling industry and not a railroad museum. Why should somebody who is a railroad fan visit this museum?
The museum, founded in 1903 as the Old Dartmouth Historical Society but operates under the name ‘New Bedford Whaling Museum’, features different galleries and exhibits exhibiting the life in the whaling industry. One exhibit displays a half scale model of a whaling ship called the ‘Lagoda’. What is special about this ship? It is the largest scale model ship in the world.
Some of you are saying, “That is nice. However, there is nothing about the railroad here.”
What does this have to do with the railroad? Well, there is no connection with the railroad and the whaling industry. Why visit this museum?
The museum tells the story of the whaling industry in New Bedford, but New Bedford also had other industries like glass and textiles and other industries in the town. One of the exhibit halls is the ‘Energy and Enterprise’ exhibit. Yes, it displays the industries in the city. As you look around, you see a model of a streetcar. Streetcars began in New Bedford from 1872 by the New Bedford and Fairhaven Street Railway Company. The Union Street Railway Company took over in 1887, and it ran until 1947. A model of Streetcar Number 540 is in a glass display.
Is that all? No.
Another display tells the story of how the railroad connected the city of New Bedford to the rest of the nation. In 1840, the railroad came to town. Being a major international port at the time, items were transported from the ships onto railroad cars and transported to various towns throughout the United States of America.
Yes, it is called the New Bedford Whaling Museum, but it also tells the history of the city and how the railroad was a big part of the city. The museum also has collections that are related to the Old Colony Line, the New Bedford Railroad Company, and the Union Street Railway Company.
The New Bedford Whaling Museum is located at 18 Johnny Cake Hill in New Bedford, Massachusetts. It is located off of Interstate 195, U.S. Route 6, and Massachusetts Route 18. It is open Tuesday to Sunday (closed Monday) from 9:00am to 5:00pm. The museum is fully wheelchair accessible. Please note that the museum does not have its own parking. You can get information on parking, buy tickets, look more into their intensive collection to include those about the railroads and streetcars, and get more information at Home – New Bedford Whaling Museum.
Yes, it is called the New Bedford Whaling Museum. It is a whaling museum that also tells the story of how the railroad was a major contributor to the industry of this town.
The U.S. state of Missouri is located in the middle of the United States of America. It is famous for its two major cities: Saint Louis, commonly called the ‘Gateway of the West’, and Kansas City, a city known as ‘The City of Fountains’ for having more fountains than any other city in the world. The Mississippi River makes up the eastern border of the state while the Missouri River flows through the central region of the state. One of the most famous routes in the nation, U.S. Route 66, passed through the state. One of the towns along this route is the town of Pacific. Located 30 miles (50 kilometers) southwest of the city of Saint Louis, many travelers passed through the town until Interstate 44 was built which is far more used today. The town was the site of a battle during the American Civil War. The town of Pacific, Missouri is an American Midwestern small town that tells the story of Midwest America.
Some of you are saying, “Wait a minute. Pacific, Missouri? The state of Missouri does not border any ocean nor is it anywhere near the Pacific Ocean. Besides, this is not a railroad town. With Missouri being the ‘Show Me State’, do not waste my time showing me the town of Pacific, Missouri.”
Well, not too many people know about the town of Pacific, Missouri. Before the Interstate Highways were built, many travelers passed through here. It is not near any ocean to include the Pacific Ocean. Why would anybody what to visit this town?
Well, the town was not always known as Pacific. It was originally called Franklin, Missouri. It started out as a town of log cabins, but it then evolved into a regular town. In 1853, the Pacific Railroad came to the town. A railroad depot was built, and a post office was established. In 1864, ‘The Battle of Pacific’ a battle of the American Civil War, took place. The Confederate Army burned many structures to include the train depot. The Confederate Army attacked the railroads around the town. The Union Army eventually were able to force out the Confederate Army. A new railroad depot was built in 1882, and in was in use until 1961 when passenger service declined. The depot was demolished in 1976.
Today, you can follow the original route of U.S. Route 66 through the town. The Union Pacific Railroad and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF) roll through the town today, and the Union Pacific Railroad have offices here. Located on S. First Street just south of the railroad crossing is Pacific Station Plaza. Located at the original site of the train depot, you will see an inspector’s car and a caboose from the Burlington Northern Railroad. The town is located off of Interstate 44 and U.S. Route 50.
The named time you here about a town called Pacific, Missouri, it is not just a town on the old U.S. Route 66. It is a town that got its name from the railroad.
