THIS IS AMERICA -May 20, 2002: B&O Railroad Museum
By George Grow
VOICE ONE:
The American city of Baltimore, Maryland is home to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum. Museum
officials have organized a special sixteen-month event. It celebrates the one-hundred-seventy-fifth anniversary of
railroads in America. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. This celebration of American railroads is our
report today on the VOA Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.
((Sound of old steam engine and whistle))
VOICE ONE:
The one-hundred-seventy-fifth anniversary celebration honors two
important dates in railroad history. The first is when lawmakers in Maryland approved a resolution to create the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. That happened on February twenty-seventh, eighteen-twenty-seven. The other
event is the ceremonial laying of the first stone to build the railroad. That happened on July fourth, eighteen-
twenty-eight.
(Pictures -The B&O Railroad Museum
Collection)
The B-and-O Railroad Museum in Baltimore has planned a number of activities
during the anniversary period. The museum will present special shows, train trips
and other events through July of next year. The celebration is called “One-
Hundred-Seventy-Five Years: America On Track.
”
VOICE TWO:
Courtney Wilson is the Railroad Museum’s executive director and a historian. He
says one way to study American history is through the development of American
railroads.
Baltimore, Maryland is a major port in the eastern United States. Early in the
nineteenth century, the Erie Canal threatened Baltimore’s economy. The Erie
Canal was the first major waterway built in America. It provided an easy way to
transport goods from the Great Lakes area to the port of New York City.
Mister Wilson notes that people in England created what we know today as the railroad. He says businessmen
from Baltimore sent representatives to England to study the early railroad technology. When the railroad was
brought to the United States, the technology almost had to be reinvented. The English countryside was mostly
flat. The Baltimore area, however, had large rivers, mountains, and roads that were not straight.
VOICE ONE:
The name Baltimore and Ohio comes from the idea of operating a railroad from Baltimore in the East to the Ohio
River in the Middle West. At first, there were disputes about exactly where the railroad would be built.
Organizers asked United States Army engineers to design a path to the West. Difficult negotiations and a political
debate followed. Finally, the Carroll family, one of the oldest in Maryland, provided land for the railroad’
s
headquarters. The B-and-O Railroad Museum now occupies the property.
((Sound of railroad crossing and old steam engine))
The B-and-O Railroad was the first railroad built in North America. The first railroad line was powered by
horses. By Eighteen-Thirty, the B -and-O operated three horse-powered trains each day to the nearby town of
Ellicott’s Mills. Soon, the railroad was carrying more than four-hundred passengers a day. The company added
new cars to the system as soon as they were built.
VOICE TWO:
By this time, trains powered by steam had been successfully tested in England. This development was of great
interest to Peter Cooper, an inventor from New York. He told B-and-O officials that he had an idea for building a
steam-powered engine. Mister Cooper developed the first steam engine for the new railroad. The engine was later
called “Tom Thumb.
”
One story says the Tom Thumb steam engine once raced against a horse pulling a passenger train car. Just as the
little engine moved into the lead, a piece of equipment broke. After that, the horse easily won the race. The
details have never been confirmed, but the story is often repeated.
VOICE ONE:
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was never the largest or most powerful railroad in the United States. However,
it was the first railroad in many ways. The B-and-O was the first to publish a timetable --the list of the times the
trains left and arrived. The B-and-O operated America’s first train station to earn money from paying
passengers. The B-and-O was the first railroad to enter the nation’s capital, Washington, D-C. It also was the
first railroad to have an agreement with the federal government to transport the mail.
The B-and-O was the first railroad from the eastern United States to reach
the Ohio River. That happened in Eighteen-Fifty-Two. Forty-three years
later, the B-and-O was the first American railroad to use an electric-
powered train.
((Sound of old steam engine))
VOICE TWO:
One reason for the B-and-O’s success was the Mount Clare Shops in Baltimore. This is where workers repaired
engines, train cars and other equipment. The Mount Clare Shops also were active in research and development.
Courtney Wilson says the shops developed all the ideas for railroads in America. This included how to build a
rail line and what kinds of materials would be used.
At one time, the Mount Clare Shops employed more than four-thousand people. Steam engines, passenger and
freight cars were built here. Once, workers built a bridge, and then transported it by train to its new home.
For more than one-hundred years, the B-and-O and the Mount Clare Shops were the largest employers in
Baltimore. Mount Clare is now part of the museum.
VOICE ONE:
Today, the B-and-O Railroad Museum occupies fifteen hectares of land in the center of Baltimore. It is a short
walk from the city’s popular Inner Harbor area. About one-hundred-sixty-thousand people visit the museum
each year. It operates as a private business. The government provides little financial help.
Much of the money comes from people who pay to visit the museum or to become supporting members. Other
money comes as gifts from individuals, businesses and non-profit groups.
VOICE TWO: The B-and-O Railroad Museum occupies five buildings. One is called The Roundhouse. The
Roundhouse is not really round, but has twenty-two sides. It also may be the world’s largest circular industrial
building. It is more than thirty-seven meters tall.
When first built, the Roundhouse was a place where passenger cars were repaired. In the center is a turntable. It
turns in a circle to move engines and cars from one train track to another.
The museum has more than two-hundred major pieces of railroad equipment, records and other objects. Visitors
are permitted to study and explore a number of historic railroad engines and cars. Some are more than one-
hundred years old.
((Train sounds))
VOICE ONE:
One room in the museum has paintings of people who were important to the development of American railroads.
For example, one painting shows the man who started the meat business Swift and Company. In the late
eighteen-hundreds, Gustavus Swift developed the first refrigerator car
–
a railroad car that was kept cold. He
had the idea of killing farm animals in one area and transporting their meat across the country. For this to be done
safely, the meat had to be kept cold in such a refrigerator car. Mister Swift’s idea was a great success.
Another painting at the Railroad Museum shows a young Abraham Lincoln. Before he became President, Lincoln
worked as a lawyer for a railroad company. As President, Lincoln supported calls to build a railroad across the
country. He died in Eighteen-Sixty-Five, four years before the railroad line was completed.
((Train sounds))
VOICE TWO:
For many months, B-and-O Railroad Museum officials have been organizing the celebration of American
railroads. The main event will be held next summer. It is called “The Fair of the Iron Horse, One-Hundred-
Seventy-Five.
”
It will include historic trains from railroads and private collections around the world. The trains
will operate on the first mile of railroad built in the United States. The event also will include railroad
technology, toy trains and other activities.
Museum officials say they expect as many as two-million visitors during the railroad anniversary. The visitors
will help celebrate an important part of American history.
For more information, you can write to the B-and-O Railroad Museum, nine-oh -one West Pratt Street; Baltimore,
Maryland, two-one-two-two-three, U-S-A. Computer users can find this information at w-w-w-dot-b-o-r-a-i-ldot-
o-r-g.
(THEME)
VOICE ONE:
This program was written by George Grow. It was produced by Cynthia Kirk. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another report about life in the United States on the VOA
Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.
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