The B&O Mt. Clare RoundhouseAn interior photograph of the B&O Railroad Museum's roundhouse featuring the newly acquired "York" locomotive (center), 2-6-0 ##600 (left) and 4-6-0 #147 (right).
Located in Baltimore, MD, the roundhouse was erected in 1884 and, unknown to many, built to service the B&O's diminutive passenger cars - not its locomotives. The Museum was established on July 4th, 1953 by the B&O Railroad and kept intact by by both the Chessie System and later, CSX. In 1990, CSX deeded the property and collection to the newly formed, not-for-profit museum organization governed by an independent board of directors and provided it with a $5 million endowment. In 1999, the museum became affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution. It has been called one of the most significant collections of railroad treasures in the world and has the largest collection of 19th-century locomotives in the U.S. The roof you see above was rebuilt after a heavy snow storm collapsed half the original roof on February 17th, 2003. Subsequent fund raising and restoration allowed the museum to upgrade many of its facilities, including a new facility west of the roundhouse for restoration of historical equipment and maintenance of active equipment.
