Point of Rocks station

Last updated
Point of Rocks
MARC Commuter rail station
Capitol Limited at Point of Rocks.jpg
Amtrak's Capitol Limited passing through the Point of Rocks station.
General information
Location4000 Clay Street, Point of Rocks, Maryland [1]
Coordinates 39°16′24.7″N77°32′00″W / 39.273528°N 77.53333°W / 39.273528; -77.53333
Line(s) Metropolitan Subdivision
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Construction
ParkingYes
AccessibleNo [2]
History
OpenedMay 1, 1873 (ceremonial opening) [3]
May 25, 1873 (regular passenger service) [3] [4]
Passengers
November 2022146 (daily) [5] (MARC)
Services
Preceding station MARC train.svg MARC Following station
Brunswick
towards Martinsburg
Brunswick Line Dickerson
towards Union Station
Former services
Preceding station Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Following station
Brunswick
toward Chicago
Main Line Dickerson
toward Jersey City
Catoctin
toward Chicago
Tuscarora
toward Jersey City
Terminus Old Main Line Adamstown
Point of Rocks Railroad Station
Point of Rocks station
LocationOff of U.S. 15
Point of Rocks, Maryland
Coordinates 39°16′24.7″N77°32′00″W / 39.273528°N 77.53333°W / 39.273528; -77.53333
Area4 acres (1.6 ha)
Built1875 (1875)
ArchitectE. Francis Baldwin
Architectural styleGothic
NRHP reference No. 73000918 [6]
Added to NRHPApril 11, 1973

Point of Rocks is a historic passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line between Washington, D.C., and Martinsburg, WV, located at Point of Rocks, Frederick County, Maryland, United States. [7] The station was built by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1873, and designed by E. Francis Baldwin. It is situated at the junction of the B&O Old Main Line (running to Baltimore) and the Metropolitan Branch (running to Washington, D.C.). The Met Branch also opened in 1873 and became the principal route for passenger trains between Baltimore, Washington and points west.

Contents

The main station building is a 2+12-story, triangular Gothic Revival with a four-story tower and a 1+12-story wing at the base. The tower has a pyramidal roof containing a dormer on each side. On top is a square cupola supporting a pyramidal peaked roof. [8]

The station building itself is not open to the public and is used by CSX as storage and offices for maintenance of way (MOW) crews until 2022 when its windows were boarded and the MOW facilities relocated to Brunswick to the west. In 2008, new platforms and platform shelters were built for MARC commuters traveling east towards Washington DC, replacing older bus shelter–style structures which were erected in the mid-1990s.

During the blizzard of 2010, the south side awning on the main building collapsed under the weight of record snow fall, and was later removed, leaving half the building missing cover. In January 2011, work to rebuild the destroyed part of the structure began.

The Point of Rocks Railroad Station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, [6] and reopened for the Maryland Rail Commuter Service, now called MARC, which established the Brunswick Line.

The Duke Energy Holiday Trains display at the Cincinnati Museum Center features a station modeled on Point of Rocks As does the Frederick County Society of Model Railroaders exhibit at the Walkersville Southern Railroad.

In 2023, the station will be featured on a USPS Forever stamp in a 5-stamp "Railroad Stations" series. The stamp illustrations were made by Down the Street Designs, and Derry Noyes served as the art director. [9]

Plans are currently underway for the Maryland Department of Transportation to renovate and open the interior of the station for passenger use once negotiations with CSX conclude over site clean up. Future plans include adding a new platform on the wye to serve trains to and from Frederick to increase capacity for the current service as well as additional facilities including an increase in available parking and access for busses serving the station.

Station layout

The station is not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, lacking raised platforms for level boarding.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Point of Rocks, Maryland</span> Census-designated place in Maryland, United States

Point of Rocks is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Frederick County, Maryland. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 1,466.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MARC Train</span> U.S. passenger rail system in Baltimore–Washington metropolitan area

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockville station</span> Washington Metro and MARC Train station

Rockville station is an intermodal train station located in downtown Rockville, Maryland, United States. It is served by the Washington Metro Red Line, MARC Brunswick Line commuter trains, and Amtrak Capitol Limited intercity trains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Baltimore station</span> Railway station in Baltimore, Maryland

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Main Line Subdivision</span>

The Old Main Line Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Maryland. The line runs from Relay west to Point of Rocks, and was once the main line of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, one of the oldest rail lines in the United States. At its east end, it has junctions with the Capital Subdivision and the Baltimore Terminal Subdivision; its west end has a junction with the Metropolitan Subdivision.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick Branch (Baltimore and Ohio Railroad)</span> Railroad line in Frederick County, Maryland, US

The Frederick Branch is a railroad line in Frederick County, Maryland. It was built by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) in 1831, and is now owned by the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT). The 3.4 mi (5.5 km) branch extends between Frederick Junction – a wye with the Old Main Line Subdivision of CSX Transportation on the west side of the Monocacy River – and its terminus at East Street in downtown Frederick, Maryland. The wye at Frederick Junction was the first example of its kind in the United States and is still in use today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Subdivision</span> Railroad line in Washington, D.C. and Maryland, United States

The Metropolitan Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the District of Columbia and the U.S. state of Maryland. The 53-mile line runs from Washington, D.C., northwest to Weverton, Maryland, along the former Metropolitan Branch of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brunswick Line</span> MARC commuter rail line in Maryland, West Virginia and Washington, D.C.

The Brunswick Line is a MARC commuter rail line between Washington, D.C., and Martinsburg, West Virginia, with a branch to Frederick, Maryland. It primarily serves the northern and western suburbs of Washington. The line, MARC's second longest at 74 miles, is operated under contract to MARC by Alstom and runs on CSX-owned track, including the Metropolitan, Old Main Line, and Cumberland subdivisions. It is the successor to commuter services provided by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O), which date to the mid-19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martinsburg station</span> MARC and Amtrak rail station in Martinsburg, West Virginia, US

Martinsburg station is a railway station in Martinsburg, West Virginia, United States, served by MARC Brunswick Line commuter rail service and Amtrak Capitol Limited intercity rail service. The station has one side platform serving a siding track of the CSX Cumberland Subdivision, with a footbridge crossing the siding and the two main tracks to provide access to the preserved Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Martinsburg Shops complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kensington station (Maryland)</span> MARC rail station in Kensington, Maryland, United States

Kensington is a passenger railroad station at 10417 Howard Avenue in Kensington, Maryland, United States. Opened by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) in 1891, the Kensington station is today served by MARC Train's Brunswick Line, which makes 15 weekday scheduled stops at Kensington, plus one flag stop on Fridays.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washington Grove station</span> MARC rail station in Washington Grove, Maryland, United States

Washington Grove is a passenger rail station in Washington Grove, Maryland, on MARC Train's Brunswick Line. The station serves a historic community near Washington, D.C. that was a summer retreat for many of its citizens during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, but that recently have become year-round residences without destroying the outward appearance of the original structures in the community. Originally the rail connection provided the transportation to the community, which is designed only for pedestrian use along footpaths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gaithersburg station</span> MARC rail station in Gaithersburg, Maryland, United States

Gaithersburg station is a commuter rail station located on the Metropolitan Subdivision in downtown Gaithersburg, Maryland. It is served by the MARC Brunswick Line service; it was also served by Amtrak from 1971 to 1986. The former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad station building and freight shed, designed by Ephraim Francis Baldwin and built in 1884, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Gaithersburg B & O Railroad Station and Freight Shed. They are used as the Gaithersburg Community Museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boyds station</span> MARC rail station in Boyds, Maryland, United States

Boyds is an active commuter railroad train station in Boyds, Montgomery County, Maryland. Located on Clopper Road west of the junction with Maryland Routes 117 and 121, the station services trains of MARC's Brunswick Line between Union Station in Washington, D.C. and Martinsburg, West Virginia, along with some trains to Frederick, Maryland. Trains for Amtrak's Capitol Limited bypass the station. The next station west is Barnesville and the next one east is Germantown. Boyds station consists of two low-level side platforms and a single three-sided glass shelter, along with a small parking lot. Boyds station includes a 1931-built pedestrian tunnel originally built by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barnesville station</span> MARC rail station in Barnesville, Maryland, United States

Barnesville is an active commuter railroad train station in Barnesville, Montgomery County, Maryland. Located on Beallsville Road, Barnesville station services trains of MARC Train's Brunswick Line between Union Station in Washington D.C. and Martinsburg, West Virginia. Additional trains operate to Frederick, Maryland. Amtrak's Capitol Limited operates through the station, but does not make any stops. The next station west is Dickerson while the next station east is Boyds. Barnesville station contains two low-level side platforms, connected by a pathway across the tracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dickerson station</span> MARC rail station in Dickerson, Maryland, US

Dickerson is a passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line between Washington, D.C., and Martinsburg, WV. This station was designed by E. Francis Baldwin and built by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1891. It is the last station Frederick bound trains pass before branching onto the Frederick Branch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monocacy station</span> MARC rail station in Frederick County, Maryland, US

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick station</span> MARC rail station in Frederick, Maryland, United States

Frederick is a passenger rail station and the northern terminus of the MARC Brunswick Line's Frederick branch, which heads south toward Washington, D.C. This is one of two stations on the Frederick branch. The station is also a major hub for buses of the TransIT Services of Frederick, Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brunswick station (Maryland)</span> MARC rail station in Brunswick, Maryland, United States

Brunswick is a passenger rail station on the MARC Brunswick Line between Washington, D.C., and Martinsburg, West Virginia. The station house, located at 100 South Maple Street in Brunswick, Maryland, is a former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad depot that is a contributing property to the Brunswick Historic District, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since August 29, 1979. The station was designed by Ephraim Francis Baldwin and opened in 1891 on Seventh Avenue. Several years later the building was moved to its current location. It is a wooden frame building with stone walls up to the window sills, and features Palladian windows in the roof dormers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowie Railroad Buildings</span> Railway building and museum in Bowie, Maryland, US

The Bowie Railroad Buildings comprise three small frame structures at the former Bowie train station, located at the junction of what is now the Northeast Corridor and the Pope's Creek Subdivision in the town center of Bowie, Maryland. The complex includes a single-story freight depot, a two-story interlocking tower, and an open passenger shed. The station was served by passenger trains from 1872 until 1989, when it was replaced by Bowie State station nearby. The buildings were restored in 1992 as the Bowie Railroad Museum and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.

References

  1. "MARC Station Information". MTA Maryland . Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  2. "MARC Station Information". Maryland Transit Administration . Retrieved 2021-01-30.
  3. 1 2 "Metropolitan Branch Railroad". The Baltimore Sun . May 1, 1873. p. 1. Retrieved July 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  4. "Metropolitan Branch Railroad". The Baltimore Sun . November 18, 1873. p. 1. Retrieved July 17, 2023 via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  5. "MARC Brunswick Line Technical Report" (PDF). Maryland Transit Administration . Retrieved 2023-02-19.
  6. 1 2 "National Register Information System  (#73000918)". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  7. MARC station list (includes Point of Rocks) Archived 2010-01-31 at the Wayback Machine MARC official website
  8. Arthur Townsend (June 1972). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Point of Rocks Railroad Station" (PDF). Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved 2016-01-01.
  9. "U.S. Postal Service Reveals Stamps for 2023". United States Postal Service. October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 26, 2022.

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