Location: Roundhouse, Bays 2-4 

From the original horsepower of horse-drawn carriages to steam-powered “grasshoppers,” “tea kettles,” and more, this section of the Roundhouse celebrates the earliest forms of railway transportation along America’s first commercial railway, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. These 100-year-old historic replicas housed in this collection were designed for the Fair of the Iron Horse in 1927, which celebrated the first centennial of railroading in the U.S. with the B&O Railroad and showcased the evolution of the earliest forms of transportation like wagons, coach cars, and locomotives. The section concludes with the B&O No. 13 Lafayette, which marked the transition from vertical boilers to the more efficient and conventional horizontal boiler that would become the standard design. 

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Jeffery O.
December 2024

Wonderful rail museum with many historic engines, passenger cars, mail car, troop transport, and more. Several models layouts including the Smithsonian collection of models which was amazing. Wonderful presentation on the underground railroad. We will visit again.

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