While browsing for GB related stuff online (I do this occasionally; you never know what you’ll find!) I stumbled upon a few well-tagged photos on Flickr showing a few neat shots down in Georgetown at the North end of the yards. If I had to guess I’d say these are from the 1970s. Photos of Georgetown are so rare these really made my day! Enjoy.
Category Archives: History
The Don Wetmore collection
New photos! Recently a member of the B&O Yahoo! Group posted a nice little collection of photos he shot in the late 1970s. He so graciously allowed me to re-post them to my Georgetown Branch gallery so all can enjoy! Hope you like them:
Another One Bites the Dust
The building seen here which was located in Bethesda just North of the River Road crossing is no more. Nothing remains but the tracks in the pavement and a big hole where it once was. They’ll probably put up a Starbucks or a CVS. According to various maps and references I have, this was once an auto parts warehouse. Tracks served it on the right side.
Layout progress & a couple photos
Well, it’s been a long, long time (once again) since my last update here. If you’re regularly checking the Gallery page then you know that I’ve been posting some progress photos of the layout construction. I’m about half way done with the helix but it’s slow going. Mainly due to the addition to my family- a new baby girl! Born on 7/5/06.
In the meantime, I’ve done a couple other things GB related. I was lucky enough to gain access to a wonderful collection of old GB photos and documents which has helped greatly in my research. I also took a tour of the Georgetown Waterfront to document all the changes that are occuring there. And, I’ve posted a couple photos from a site visitor in the Gallery.
The E.L. “Tommy” Thompson Collection
At a recent B&ORRHS Archives Sorting Session, I scanned some pics from Tommy’s albums. These photos depict the Georgetown Branch from 1948 – 1951. Primarily they are of Georgetown Junction, on the Metropolitan Branch, where the Geo. Branch began. There is also a series from the 6/6/1948 MSME Excursion trip down the GB pulled by Q1c 4320. Pics are in the Gallery.
The Wm. Duvall Collection
I recently was lucky enough to scan the negatives of Wm. Duvall, a Chevy Chase local. He allowed me to post them to my site. They are absolutely fantastic photos and give one a really fantastic glimpse back to when trains once ran on the Georgetown Branch. His photos cover from the late 1950s through the 1970s, with a few 1940s (and earlier!) shots thrown in. They are in the Gallery.
I also completed installation of the fluorescent lights in the layout room. I have also been doing tests and planning on the helix which will go under the stairs to connect the two levels. I have tentatively decided on the heights for the two layout shelf levels as 36″ and 57″. I am 5’6″ tall. I continue to refine the track plan and hope to have an updated copy up soon. Pics are in the Gallery.
History & Gallery updates
I picked up a “Car Service Circular No. 4” at the last B&ORRHS Sorting Session. There is a small mention of the GB in it, so I scanned and posted it in the History section. Matthew G. Vurek was generous enough to lend me 3 more photos of his! They are really great, so check them out in the Gallery. Work in the layout room is on hiatus right now as I am building a brick walkway in the front yard, a retaing wall in the back yard and a walkway ’round the side of the house.
Signal & Landmark Map
Added to the History section. Provides info on what the signal layout originally looked like at Georgetown Junction. This layout changed in 1996 with the MARC/Amtrak accident in the Geo. Jct. area.
Some additions to the site and work progress report
On Tuesday night some members of my Model RR club helped me paint the walls in the Layout room with Zinsser B-I-N Shellac Base Primer-Sealer. MAN that stuff smells! We did most of the room, but ran out of paint. I have to do more. One of the club members suggested removing all the furring strips on the walls and redoing them. This got me thinking that I might go ahead and do this. I am going to measure the ones that are in place now and see how they stand up. I want to have consistently spaced strips and as they are now some are crooked, loose or odd. They are also fastened to the walls with masonry nails instead of screws, which to me is no good. So this may be my next project.I have added a bunch of stuff to the History section. Take a look. I added some documents, notes and maps.