B&O Railroad Museum 200th Anniversary Campus Transformation Capital Campaign

The B&O Railroad Museum is a historic site located on the original B&O Railroad grounds, the first commercially chartered railroad in the country in 1827.

The Museum plans to restore the South Car Works building, the oldest, continuously operating railroad repair facility in the United States if not the world, 1869 – 1990. In restoring this 33,000 square feet building and making it the new entrance to the Museum, the Museum will reconfigure its campus flow to face Southwest Baltimore.

The Museum is actively preparing for the 200th anniversary celebration of the railroad in 2027! The campus transformation will be complete by 2027 as well as in time for the 250th anniversary of the United States in 2026. The railroad was Maryland’s gift to the nation.

Innovation Hall
The Top floor of the building will be used to create an Innovation Hall displaying the present and future of railroading technology. The Museum has the most comprehensive collection of 19th century rolling stock in the Western Hemisphere and significant pieces of 20th century rolling stock innovations. However, the Museum does not currently have space to display, engage, and educate the public on new railroad technological innovations, such as hybrid engines for cleaner fuels, positive train control, modern-day command operation centers. The technology in the industry is constantly evolving to ensure safe, clean, efficient transport of goods and passengers.

Archival Space
Did you know the Museum maintains an extensive archives collection containing:

• Employee records for genealogical searches
• Complete set of B&O Railroad Board of Director minutes starting with the first meeting of the Directors in 1827
• Correspondence with U.S. presidents such as between President Lincoln and the B&O; the B&O supported the Union and was known as “Lincoln’s Railroad”
• Over 200,000 photographs along with original paintings by American artists commissioned by the B&O and other amazing collections.

The first floor of the South Car Works will provide dedicated temperature controlled space for the archives, allowing for reading rooms and for the general public to access the archives and for educators to teach children how to use ‘original source’ documents.

Smart Classrooms
Space will be dedicated for two smart classrooms. The Museum’s education program has doubled in size since 2019 and the trajectory is for more growth both in terms of onsite visits and digital learning opportunities.

Community Economic Development:
By creating a beautiful entrance and accessible community space and turning the Museum’s face to Southwest Baltimore, the goal as an anchor institution is to help catalyze further investment in the community and to improve overall community quality of life.

Create better wayfinding and flow for Museum guests:
Having guests enter the Museum and walk back through time, starting with the present and future, moving towards the 20th century and finishing with the first 100 years of railroading in the 1884 Roundhouse creates a better experience for the guest. The Museum is a brand ambassador for American railroading.

Historic Preservation and railroading legacy:
The South Car Works is a national landmark with its outside walls protected under easement. The building deserves to be restored and its legacy honored.

We’re on the front end of this exciting time and project that reimagines our campus and interpretive flow of the exhibits. The pre-design for the project has been completed, and we are in the early stages of final design. Seed investors for this capital project include CSX, the State of Maryland, several members of the Museum’s Board of Directors and other loyal donors. The total campus transformation plan is projected to cost $30 million dollars. CSX’s gift is the lead gift followed by the state, a public private partnership. The B&O Railroad was our nation’s first public-private partnership project. Naming opportunities exist and the Museum looks forward to working with everyone to complete this transformative project, national in relevance, local In impact.