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Walkersville Southern Railroad"Scenic train rides in historic Monocacy Valley, Maryland" |
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
All aboar-r-rd for a trip back in time ... on the Walkersville Southern. Travel over track that the Pennsylvania Railroad originally built in 1872. Come see our turn-of-the-century railroad station and tool house. Ride in vintage 1920s passenger cars or on an open flatcar as your rail excursion runs past a 100-year-old lime kiln, and then out into picturesque Maryland farm country. Whether it is a scenic excursion for the whole family or a romantic dinner for two, we have something for everyone. You will find history and adventure on the Walkersville Southern.
The Walkersville Southern Railroad is a 7-mile tourist railway operation located in Walkersville, Maryland. Formed in the early 1990s, today the railroad operates on a portion of former Pennsylvania Railroad trackage now owned by the State of Maryland. Built by the Frederick & Pennsylvania Line Railroad in 1869, from Frederic north to the state line, the route was soon leased to and later purchased by the Pennsylvania Railroad and operated as a portion of their Frederick Division -- operating from Frederick as far north as Columbia, Pennsylvania. Over the years, always under PRR control, the route was reorganized several times under various corporate names and survived into the creation of PennCentral in 1968. After the PennCentral bankruptcy in 1970, the Maryland segment of the route -- debilitated by a Hurricane Agnes bridge washout -- was sold to the State of Maryland. In 1980, the new Maryland Midland shortline operated on the line as far south as Walkersville to serve a lime shipper, but the Frederick segment went dormant.
With state approval to operate as a tourist hauler, the new Walkersville Southern began rehabilitation of the Walkersville segment of the line in 1991. Excursion trains ran as far south as the Monocacy River by 1995, and then over the rebuilt bridge by the following year. Today the tourist line terminates north of Frederick, with plans for the line inside the city to become a rails-to-trail program. In 2008 the state granted the WSR rights to operate 3 miles of trackage north of Walkersville, including a link to the Maryland Midland Railway. However, today that link to the shortline is out of service, as the trackage northbound has deteriorated -- leaving the WSR functionally isolated from the rail network. The Walkersville Southern collection includes several rare light diesel-electric switchers for motive power, coaches and excursion cars for excursions, cabooses and other rolling stock, plus a restored passenger depot, 2-track locomotive shop, and a small railroad museum.
2019 tourist train guide ad / collection
2020 brochure / collection
1893 Official Guide table / collection
1955 Official Guide table / collection
1955 Official Guide map / collection
Location
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville depot
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Click to see the Walkersville depot area plotted on a Google Maps page
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Enginehouse
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
In 2017 the Walkersville Southern Railroad Museum was established. It is housed in a building constructed in 1911 by the Walkersville Ice & Power Company, an enterprise associated with the Glade Valley Milling Company, which produced and sold grain. The building was part of a sprawling complex of buildings owned by Glade Valley. All that remains of the complex is the former ice plant building and the large shed across the track, which currently serves as the Walkersville Southern Railroad engine house.
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Equipment
Publications
2020 promotional brochure / collection
1998 tourist train guide ad / collection
2002 tourist train guide ad / collection
2006 tourist train guide ad / collection
2019 tourist train guide ad / collection
Lagniappe
Last of the Smokies
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Plymouth Puller
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
State Line Sentiments
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Crackle and Pop
Jul 2020 / RWH
A Plymouth Man
Jul 2020 / RWH
Preservation People
Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville All Stop
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Suspended Animation
Jul 2020 / RWH
Wabash Born
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Meet Me at the Depot
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Walkersville, Md / Jul 2020 / RWH
Links / Sources
- Walkersville Southern Railroad website
- Walkersville Southern Railroad Museum website
- Wikipedia article for Walkersville Southern
- Diesel Shop roster for Walkersville Southern
- Visit Frederick Maryland website
- All Aboard! 6 Scenic Trains to See Fall Foliage
- Todd's Railfan Guide to the Walkersville Southern Railroad