Walkersville Southern Railroad

The Walkersville Southern Railroad (reporting mark WS)[1] is a 6.72 mile (11 km) heritage railway in Walkersville, Maryland.[2] running from MP 60.0 south of Woodsboro, MD to MP 66.72 just north of the intersection of Route 26 and U.S. Route 15 near Frederick, Maryland (Using PRR Milepost data where mileage ran north to south, and Frederick was at MP 69.0).

Walkersville Southern Railroad
Overview
HeadquartersWalkersville, Maryland
LocaleFrederick County, Maryland
Dates of operation1995Present day
PredecessorPenn Central Transportation Company
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8 12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length6.72 miles (11 km)
Other
Websitehttp://www.wsrr.org/
Route map

Woodsboro Siding
North Glade Road
Devilbliss Bridge Road
South Glade Road
Main Street
Biggs Ford Road
Walkersville
Gargil Siding
Tucker Siding
North Park
South Park
Fountain Rock Lime Kiln
Fountain Rock Road
Retreat Road
Rotorex Crossing
Rotorex Siding
Monocacy River bridge and viaduct
Tuscarora Creek bridge
Monocacy Boulevard
State Farm Crossing
Spring Bank Avenue/Wormans Mill Road
Frederick

History

The Walkersville Southern Railroad runs track and structures originally built by the Frederick and Pennsylvania Line railroad. This railroad ran from Frederick, Md to the Pennsylvania-Maryland State line, or Mason–Dixon line near Kingsdale,PA. Chartered in 1867, the railroad started construction in 1869 and cost $868,687.50 ($2021=18,539,000). It opened October 8, 1872 and was subsequently leased to the Pennsylvania Railroad from January 1, 1875 and in July of that year, PRR formed a new division, the Frederick division to operate the rail line. In the spring of 1896, it was liquidated in a judicial sale to the Pennsylvania Railroad for 10% of its 1896 book value. Pennsylvania reorganized the railroad in December, 1896 as the Frederick and Northern Railroad Company. In March 1897, this new company was itself merged with other Pennsylvania-controlled railways (Littlestown Railroad and the Hanover and York Railroad Company) into the Hanover and York Railroad Company, chartered under the general laws of Pennsylvania and Maryland. In 1914, this railroad and the newly built Central Railroad of Maryland were then merged into the York, Hanover and Frederick Railway Company which remained a wholly owned stock subsidiary of the PRR into the creation of the PennDel company in December 31, 1953[3] and then the Penn Central merger in 1968 and then bankruptcy in 1970. The Frederick and Pennsylvania Line segment was transferred to the State of Maryland in 1982 for unpaid taxes.

One of the industries that fed the railroad during its earliest time of operations was the Lime Kiln in Walkersville. This was among the industries that fueled the need of the railroad, to ship fertilizer to farmers in and around the Walkersville region. The Frederick Secondary remained in the control of the Pennsylvania Railroad even into the creation of the Penn Central Railroad. The Walkersville Southern operates on part of the Penn Central's Frederick Secondary. Penn Central, then in bankruptcy, sold the line to the state of Maryland in 1972 after Hurricane Agnes washed out the bridge over the Monocacy River. The line remained dormant until 1980 when the Maryland Midland Railway began operations over the route between Walkersville north to Taneytown. South of Walkersville the right-of-way, devoid of freight customers, was overtaken by brush and weeds.

Volunteers for the new Walkersville Southern began restoring the line in 1991. The State of Maryland awarded the company operation of the line south of Walkersville in 1993 and tourist trains began running to the Monocacy River in 1995. The bridge was rebuilt, completed in March 1996, and trains began crossing the river, 23 years after Agnes. In 1998, the line was rebuilt to its current terminus at Maryland Route 26 in Frederick. Although crossing Maryland Route 26 was in the original plan to reach potential freight customers in downtown Frederick, the rise in automobile traffic over Route 26 and the departure of potential customers from Frederick led to the eventual abandonment of any further restoration plans into the city. Current local government plans call for the old right-of-way south of Route 26 to be converted into a hiker-biker trail.

In November 2008, Maryland granted rights to operate three miles of right-of-way to the north, linking to the Maryland Midland Railway at North Glade Road. In 2013 the summer steam excursion was routed over a portion of the newly restored track. As of the January 1st, 2014 the north division has been restored.

Operations

Today, the railroad runs two to three round trips daily on Saturdays and Sundays in May, June, September, and October; and on Saturdays only in July and August. They also host some special events, including some on weekends and during the off-season such as a railfan trip with a visiting steam tank engine, or Santa trains during the Christmas season. In some cases individuals with their own equipment can use the right of way with prior permission or during selected special events.

The railroad typically operates unique industrial diesel locomotives, all rarely seen in today's modern railroading. In 2012, the railroad operated steam excursions for the first time using the Gramling Locomotive Works "Flagg Coal 75" an 0-4-0T tank engine. The 75's operation marked the first time a steam locomotive had operated on this railway since the Pennsylvania Railroad last ran steam over 60 years ago. In 2013, steam returned in the form of Lehigh Valley Coal 126, also owned by the Gramling family. In 2018, after the addition of Crossing Signals the railroad turned over to Jeddo Coal 85, also owned by the GLW, due to 126's blind axle causing problems with the detection devices at the crossing.

Diesel locomotives

Number Image Builder Type Date Status Note
WSRR 1 Plymouth Locomotive Works 18-ton switcher 1941 Display Formerly operated by the Wilmington & Western Railroad
WSRR 2 Davenport Locomotive Works 25-ton switcher 1939 Operational. MOW locomotive Built on steam switcher frame
WSRR 3 Davenport Locomotive Works 20-ton switcher 1942 Undergoing/awaiting restoration Formerly US Army 7707 at Fort Holabird, MD, during WW II
WMSR/WSRR #7 Plymouth Locomotive Works Plymouth CR4 1960 Operational Said to be originally from the Mount Union Connecting Railroad; Part of an exchange between The Walkersville Southern Railroad and Western Maryland Scenic Railroad
ex-AFC #9 General Electric Transportation GE 45-ton switcher June 1943 Operational Originally built for the US Navy; Migrated to the American car and steel foundation; Recently overhauled; Bought at an auction hosted by the American Car And Steel Foundation; Owned by Jamie Haislip
ex-DGVR 45 General Electric Transportation GE 45-ton switcher June 1943 Operational Formerly US Army 7496 at the Army Air Forces Depot, Orlando, FL, during WW II; was owned and operated by the Durbin and Greenbrier Valley Railroad; Is owned by Al Leyh
GN/WSRR #5201 General Electric Transportation GE 44-ton switcher 1940 Awaiting Restoration Former Great Northern; believed to be the oldest survivor of its type; owned by Jamie Haislip
WSRR 101 Electro-Motive Division EMD Model 40 1942 Out of service since late 2019 and as of late 2020 One of only 11 EMD built in total; formerly US Army 7954 during WW II
ex-PRR, nee- SRC 9331 General Electric Transportation GE 44-ton switcher 1948 Undergoing overhaul Owned by the Strasburg Railroad from the 1960s to 2013; now owned by Jamie Haislip
PRR 9339 General Electric Transportation GE 44-ton switcher 1948 Operational Original PRR equipment; formerly South Carolina Railroad Museum 33; owned by Jamie Haislip


Rolling Stock

Type Image Quantity Builder Status Note
Open excursion car Two cars; #10 and #11 Unknown. #11 ex-B&O, #10 ex-WVN Both cars operational Primarily found on summer trains
P54 Five cars Long Island Railroad Four cars are fully operational. One lettered "Ligonier Valley". Three used in passenger service. One used as a dining car. One being restored. Used year-round; formerly owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road between 1908-1972.
Troop Sleeper One car Pullman-Standard Operational Used on the dinner train; ex-WM car, originally US Army in World War II
Solarium Observation Car One car Pullman-Standard Operational Part of the dinner train consist; was operated on the Southern Pacific Lark train
RF&P Caboose 923 One car Unknown Operational Mainly used with all excursion trains; Formerly Richmond Fredericksburg and Potomac and Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Wabash C-17 Caboose 2827 One car Unknown Operational Used mainly with the Dinner Train Consist
PRR N5 caboose 477532 One car Unknown Stored, awaiting Restoration Privately owned

The Pullman solarium car, named the Meadow Lark,[4] is owned by the Chesapeake Railway Association[5] and under restoration by the WS. The railroad uses it on dinner trains as a dressing room for dinner theater actors and as a mount for a generator (attached to the car's underside) for providing electrical power to the train. In addition to the RF&P 923[6] and Wabash 2827[7] cabooses hosted for the CRA, the railroad also hosts a number of private equipment for multiple individuals. For example, there is a private but once active PRR N5 in the yard.[8]

Walkersville Southern Railroad Museum

The railroad has a small museum in a separate building near the 1890s Walkersville Depot. The museum contains railroad artifacts and a model railroad.

Misc.

The Maryland Midland Railway hosted special excursions prior to the formation of the WS. These were the last passenger operations until 1993.

The WSRR has two divisions, the North Division and the South Division. These divisions are from the train yard until the end of the line in their respective cardinal directions.

See also

References

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