|
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
Our library is located in the base of the former Pennsylvania Railroad Interlocking Tower (Bowie Tower) located at 8614 Chestnut Avenue in historic Old Bowie, Maryland. The Tower is part of the Bowie Railroad Station and Huntington Museum which is operated by the City of Bowie, Maryland. For a map and/or step by step directions, click here to use Google maps! This is a fitting home for a railroad library, a former railroad interlocking tower next to a very busy railroad line. The Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Company built the first station here in 1872 at the junction of rail lines into Washington, D.C. and Southern Maryland. The lines were later integrated into the Pennsylvania Railroad system. The Town of Bowie (originally Huntington City) grew up around the train station. The existing museum buildings were constructed in the early 1900's by the Pennsylvania Railroad, The tower, manned by an operator, controlled the switches at this important railroad junction. The tower closed in 1989 when control of the junction was remoted to a central location by the railroad. This tower and station were originally located just southeast of their present location, between the tracks of what is now Amtrak's Northeast Corridor and the CSX "Pope's Creek" branch line. These buildings were moved to this location in the early 1990s by the City of Bowie. The library is on the first floor of the tower and is open to the public beginning September 22nd, 2007 Tuesday - Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and for groups of 10 or more by appointment. For additional information, or to schedule a group tour, call 301-809-3089. To ensure the integrity of the colleciton, a driver's license or other form of government issued identification may be required to gain access to the collection. If you arrive at the museum and find the door to the library locked, please inquire at the nearby Visitor's Center for access. Restrooms are available in the Visitor's Center. There are a couple of locations nearby in old town to catch lunch at. No food or drink is permitted in the facility other than small bottles of water.
.
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
a project of the National Railway
Historical Society, Washington, D.C. Chapter, Inorporated, a non-profit
501(c)(3) organization.
|
 |
||||||