mill. This time they backed up caboose- first to reach the plant. By this time the sun was going down and we were done for the day. We were very pleased with what we had accomplished that day, but little did we know what was in store for Sunday! Dave Beach joined Terry Chicwak and I as Mark Demaline had to return home early. We originally had no solid plans for Sunday until we learned that Chessie was putting together a second run for us with the F-units! We made a brief stop at the Virginia Avenue tower in Washington, D.C., to capture the Southern Crescent before heading to Highfield to intercept the train. When we caught up with this encore perform- ance, we discovered that the power was three F-units and an SD-40 all in matching red-white-and-black paint! This was a general freight with mostly coal on the head end, bound for Balti- more over the Dutch Line. We chased this train east until we ran out of sun- light just outside of Baltimore. Looking back on this incredible rail-
fan weekend, it was a wonderful oppor- tunity to become acquainted with the “real” Western Maryland on its home turf. The line from Emory Grove to Union Bridge was taken over by the Maryland Midland Railway in 1983, and
the distinctive street-running
branch to the cement plant was closed in favor of a new relocated line in 2007.
Some portions of the “Wild Mary” sur- vive as tourist operations while others are now nature trails through the wilderness. Though the
creation of
Chessie System spelled the end for this colorful line, for a brief weekend in 1978, the Western Maryland lived on.
The author would like to thank David Beach and Steve Salamon for their help preparing this article.
BELOW: In a special encore performance, the Sunday road freight from Hagerstown to Bal- timore was powered by three cab units leading an SD40-2. We caught up with the train at Gettysburg, Penn., on December 17, 1978. BOTTOM: Just east of Thurmont, the local is passing the Moravian Church cemetery at the small village of Graceham on December 16. The cemetery dates back to before the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
34 JANUARY 2014 •
RAILFAN.COM
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66