The Republic Hung By a Thread
The Story of the Annapolis andElk Ridge Railroad
April 1861• Fort Sumter had fallen
• Washington could soon be isolated
• Troops left Philadelphia on April 18 and arrived in Baltimore the next day
• Had to go from President Street Station to Camden Station
Pratt Street Riot• 6th Massachusetts evaded civilians then went to
Camden Station and on to Washington
• Pennsylvania troops returned to Philadelphia
Baltimore Shuts Down
• Governor Thomas Hicks and Mayor George Brown asked Lincoln not to bring troops through Baltimore
• Hicks dispatched troops to disable bridges leading to Baltimore
In Philadelphia• Two fully-equipped
regiments were waiting
– 7th New York led by Col. Marshall Lefferts
– 8th Mass. led by Brig. General Ben Butler
– A battle of wills ensued
Philadelphia to Washington
• Via rail and bay
• To Perryville
• Board ferry to Annapolis
• Via steamer
• Around Cape Charles
• Up the Potomac
• Or on to Annapolis
•Via rail
Decisions, Decisions
• Butler chose the train
• Troops boarded a ferry
• Arrived in Annapolis harbor on April 20th
• Sat offshore at the Naval Academy before it was allowed to land
Decisions, Decisions
• Lefferts chose the steamer Boston; bypassed trip up Potomac
Arrived after Butler
Good decision – both means were very crowded
On to Washington• Narrow, muddy road “infested with guerillas and
bushwhackers”
• Green troops
• Low on ammunition and supplies
• Preferred not marching
• Winfield Scott was increasingly anxious
• Sent eight messengers looking for the troops
A&ER Railroad• Chartered in 1837, two years after B&O
completed branch from Baltimore to Washington
• Was to link Annapolis to that branch and on to Elk Ridge and the Patapsco – never got there
• $2 from Annapolis to Baltimore; $2.30 to Washington
Take the Train• Late on the 23rd – Mass. troops found rail depot
• Small, rusting, slightly disassembled locomotive and several rail cars found
• Pvt. Charles Homans of Company E
• By sunset, decision made to use train to proceed to Washington in the morning
Moving On• Turmoil overnight
• Not sure of condition of rails
• At 4 a.m. two companies of New Yorkers left the Academy grounds with a howitzer
• Mass. men had worked overnight – engine ready and first two miles of track restored
• Cut off tops of two cattle cars, one for howitzer, other for ammo and six riflemen
Moving On• Two converted cattle cars, locomotive – with Pvt.
Homans at the helm – two passenger cars filled with troops
• Going was slow
• Stopped often to search for missing track, reassemble tracks, chase off marauders
• Got to 6 mile mark by 9 a.m.
Millersville• Locomotive sent back to get the remainder of the
New Yorkers
• 2 p.m. arrived at Millersville water station
• Bridge just beyond had been destroyed
• 20 feet high, 16 feet long, over a road
• Engineers of the 7th started rebuilding
Millersville
Millersville
On to Annapolis Junction• Kept moving
• Replaced rails, found some in fields, one at the bottom of a pond
• On edge
• Arrived in Annapolis Junction about 3 a.m.
• In morning, train arrived, departed for Washington
The Link is Established
• May 5: Butler controlled Relay House
• May 8: Second route from Perryville to Locust Point (by Fort McHenry) to Washington was established
• May 13: Butler’s men occupied Baltimore and writ of habeas corpus was suspended
The Railroad Continues
• Ran until 1879 – never paid interest on initial loan
• Reorganized in 1886 as Annapolis, Baltimore and Washington Railroad
• Purchased in 1902 by the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Electric Railway
• Operated until 1935
It’s Still There
Over Dorsey Run
Fort Meade
Stables
Odenton
Station
Millersville Bridge
Millersville
Bridge
Millersville Bridge – circa 1902
Millersville Bridge Today
Millersville Bridge Today
Where the Stones Are Now