What is the Age of Steam Roundhouse? In the early years of railroading, roundhouses were needed to service the steam locomotives. From the first roundhouse in Baltimore in the U.S. state of Maryland, now the home of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum, to roundhouses across the United States of America, they were a very essential part of the movement of the railroad. When the steam locomotives which had to be serviced after one hundred miles of operation were replaced by the diesel locomotives that could run hundreds of miles of operation before they needed maintenance, the railroad roundhouse became obsolete. Although most of the old roundhouses were preserved like the Mount Clare Roundhouse in Baltimore, many were demolished. With many of these roundhouses in small towns, the closure of the roundhouses meant fewer jobs in the small town causing many small towns to decline. The era of the railroad roundhouse was no more.
With the railroad roundhouse obsolete, there will be no need to build a roundhouse ever again. A man named Jerry Joe Jacobson did not think so. Who is Jerry Joe Jacobson?
Originally from Lancaster in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, a city famous for the Amish lifestyle and is home to the famous Strasburg Railroad, the oldest continuously operating railroad in the United States of America, Jerry Joe Jacobson made his way to the U.S. state of Ohio where his work on the railroad began with passenger excursions in the area around the small town of Sugarcreek. It was here where he built a roundhouse.
Some of you are saying, “Wow! He built a roundhouse, and that roundhouse is just a museum that just collects rolling stock, and people go and see the locomotives and old passenger and freight cars.”
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Age of Steam Roundhouse. Jerry Joe Jacobson founded the Age of Steam Roundhouse with a collection of steam locomotives. Yes, it is a museum, but it is also an actual working roundhouse. As mentioned, it is an actual working roundhouse. Yes, locomotives and rolling stock are serviced here. During your visit, you may be fortunate to see restoration of a locomotive or freight car.
There are many railroad museums across the nation. Some of these railroad museums are housed in old roundhouses. What makes the Age of Steam Roundhouse special is that it is a newly built roundhouse with vintage steam locomotives from different railroads as well as diesel locomotives, old passenger cars, freight cars, and cabooses. The founder, Jerry Joe Jacobson, passed away in 2017, and he is entombed in a mausoleum just a short walk from the roundhouse.
The Age of Steam Roundhouse is located at 213 Smokey Lane Road SW south of the town of Sugarcreek, Ohio off of Ohio State Route 93. Different guided tours are offered on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from April into November with events throughout the year. (Please note that due to safety reasons and the fact that this is a working facility, all tours are conducted by a tour guide. Self-guided tours are strictly prohibited.) Parking is on site, and the facility is wheelchair accessible. You can get more information on tours (there are different tours offered), admission, events, read more into the life of Jerry Joe Jacobson and into the Jerry and Laura Jacobson Foundation, Inc. at https://ageofsteamroundhouse.org/.
It is called the Age of Steam Roundhouse to remind everyone of the era of steam railroading and the steam locomotive. As you are taken on the tour, you will be taken back in time.
John Cowgill: Stories of the Railroad 