Known as the birthplace of American railroading, the B&O Railroad Museum lets visitors experience the story of American railroading at the place where it all began. The museum is located on the grounds of the B&O Railroad’s Mt. Clare shops, houses some of the most important pieces of American railroad history, and offers events, educational programs, and tours for visitors of all ages. Start your journey at the B&O Railroad Museum today!
Choices
The museum occupies several vintage buildings, including a fully covered roundhouse and turntable built in 1884. The domed roundhouse is a distinctive feature of Baltimore’s skyline. The museum houses the largest collection of 19th-century locomotives in North America. Each piece contained in the collection is the first, the best, the last, or the only one of its kind.
When to go
The museum is open year-round, with special events scheduled throughout the year. Train rides are offered Thursday through Sunday, April through December, weekends in January, and Wednesdays in April and May.
Good to know
Allow at least a half day for a full tour of the museum, and if your schedule allows, include a 20-minute train ride along the first commercial mile of railroad track laid in America. On selected dates, tours of the modern restoration facility, reached by a stop on the One Mile Express, are available for an additional charge.
Worth doing
The museum is in a residential neighborhood just west of downtown and the city’s major sports stadiums. Baltimore has a host of other attractions, including the Irish Railroad Workers Museum, the Baltimore Streetcar Museum, the Civil War Museum (in the President Street Station, built 1850), the National Aquarium, Fort McHenry, and the nearby Edgar Allan Poe House.
Don’t miss
Babe Ruth’s birthplace is located at 216 Emory Street in Baltimore.
Getting there
Just off Interstate 95 by car. The Charm City Circulator Orange Route, a free bus, connects downtown and the Inner Harbor. Several MARC trains run to Washington D.C. daily.
Location: 901 West Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD
Phone: 410-752-2490
Website: borail.org
E-mail: info@borail.org
