Sunday, March 19, 2023

Harpers Ferry, WV: (Amtrak+MARC)/B&O Depot and Interlocking Tower (HF)

(Satellite, 538 photos)

Marty Bernard posted
6. B&O GP40 3695 built November 1966 and became CSX 6511, then SP GP40M-2 7127, then UP GP40M-2 1505 and seen leading a westbound freight at Harpers Ferry, WV July 4, 1971. Bill Howes photo

Street View, Sep 2019

The approach to the northern bridge that leads to the tunnel is in the right foreground.
Street View, Sep 2019
 
David Adair posted
Looks like moving Harpers Ferry Station and tower from  former location to new(  present ) location and track alignment.
Clayton Breeden: Circa 1931

The interlocking tower was rebuilt as part of $2.2m renovation
Stephan GrĂ¼tering, Nov 2009

Dale Sumner posted
The Harpers Ferry Train Station
The original "station" was located on Ferry Lot #1. It was a one-story brick building with a fully exposed basement on the west and north sides. It was primarily a freight depot with a small ticket office. The passengers usually waited in the Wager Hotel's public parlor for the train instead of on the benches by the freight depot.
The train station at today's Harpers Ferry was built in 1894 by the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad.
Designed by architect E. Francis Baldwin, it came during a time of increased tourism for Harpers Ferry and a golden age of railroad passenger travel. Initially overlooking the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers, it was moved to its present location in 1931, when the "newest" bridge was built.
In 2007, the station was restored after a $2.2 million renovation. Today the Harpers Ferry station continues its original role as a transportation center, servicing Amtrak and MARC trains. It is a part of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Randall Hampton shared
The restoration mentioned in the narrative included building a replica of the tower, which had been demolished years earlier.

Terry Tabb posted
Harpers Ferry Station almost finished a $2.2 million renovation. CSX E819 with 8 engines pulls a empty coal drag Westbound. 9-19-2006.

Darren Reynolds posted two photos with the comment: "B&Os 'HF' tower  Harper's ferry, West Virginia"
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Marty McCarthy commented on Darren's post
Great place to take pictures!

Darren Reynolds posted three photos with the comment:
Baltimore and Ohio Railroads 
Harper's Ferry train station..and 
"HF" tower 
Harper's Ferry, West Virginia
John Murphy: I never noticed the tower when I’d been there-
Charles Wingate: John Murphy That's because if you hadn't been there relatively recently, it wasn't there..Not having Harwood at hand, I don't know exactly when the tower was removed (it might have been as early as 1931, when they moved the station to where it is now when they realigned the river crossing) but it was reconstructed as part of the 2007 renovation.
Mike Maddox: Check the historical archives for this station. It has a really interesting history. the tower on top was there until the chessie era then torn down. during the remodel, it was put back on but lost the bay window on the ground level (wear and tear plus a lot of wood rot if memory serves). A good friend built me a model of it in HO scale as it stands in the 40s with the bay window and upper level.
John Famini: I have seen several posts on several pages about this tower. This tower is a recreation of the original which was done between 2005 and 2007.
Some are under the impression that this is the original tower.
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A waiting room without any benches is not very friendly.
Anitha Kapu, Aug 2022

bhuvana Malli, May 2021

Marc Laborde posted
An interesting photo of Harpers Ferry WV, from the Maryland Heights side. A lot in this picture remains uncharged, but it's the few changes that are fascinating. 
Of course, Harpers Ferry is the confluence of the Shenandoah River and Virginia on the left, Harpers Ferry, WV in the middle, and the Potomac River and Maryland on the bottom and right. 
A train is seen on the Shenandoah sub, leaving town westbound. The ROW appears to be at ground level. 
 A road bridge is intact on the left side, crossing the Shenndoah River into VA that I was not aware of. 
The Bollman Truss bridge from the original alignment is intact, but the rails have been removed, and the alignment have been redirected to the newer bridge. Today only the stone abutments of the Bollman bridge survive. 
 I didn't know a station existed at the westbound end of the bridge on the newer ROW.
A curious structure in the bottom center, along the Potomac, between the two railroad bridges, is a small building on stilts against the river wall. I hope its not what I fear it is!
The buildings along the Shenandoah and out of the picture along the Potomac, had to be close the the river to take advantage of the moving water to power the mill. Today that seems so short sighted. 
The B&O decided that two bridges across the Potomac wasn't enough and erected a third one and built a tunnel on the Maryland side. 
You still hike to this location and enjoy the same view, with only a few changes! 
Potomac Chapter, NRHS Archive.
Lee Wagner: Any idea about what year this picture was taken?
Marc Laborde: Lee Wagner The Bollman Truss bridge in still intact, so its pre 1930. The industies appear inactive, my guess is 1920.
Ken Heitzenrater shared

Darren Reynolds posted three photos with the comment: "Baltimore and Ohio  "Harper's Ferry" (HF) tower    West Virginia"
Jim Kelling: Tower was rebuilt when the station was restored by the National Park Service about 2008
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