Advocates attempt to resurrect the Civil War Railroad Trail

Advocates in Washington County are attempting to resurrect what is arguably the best remaining rail trail opportunity in the state of Maryland. The Civil War Railroad Trail would run for 23 miles from the C&O Canal Towpath at Weverton (near the Appalachian Trail) to Hagerstown, passing through Keedysville on the way. It would run on the abandoned portion of the old Washington County Railroad to Roxbury and then adjacent to the still active portion to Hagerstown City Park.

The project will create tourism, economic development and healthy lifestyle opportunities for the Hagerstown and Washington County area.

Connectivity will be established, via the trail, between Hagerstown and Washington DC; Pittsburgh, PA., Northern, VA and could augment commuter traffic to the MARC rail line in Brunswick, MD

The project has already been killed twice. First in 1994, due to strong opposition "from south county residents and other groups" about property rights and fear of imminent domain issues. The project was revived again in 2012 and renamed the Civil War Railroad Trail.

The Washington County Board of Commissioners agreed... to reopen talks about building a “Civil War Railroad Trail” that would follow the former Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line from Hagerstown to Weverton.

Advocates were hopeful the environment had changed. 

[County Public Works Director Joseph Kroboth III] said the opposition in the 1990s came before rails-to-trails became common and their value was widely understood. Since then, the Western Maryland Rail Trail has been built from Fort Frederick to Pearre Station, passing through Hancock, Md.

“I think we will work diligently to try to ensure the property owners’ rights are protected,” Kroboth said. “We’re trying to create an amenity to our community that creates ... tourism opportunities and also possibly some small business development.”

There was some early support. But of course one way things had changed was the rise of the Tea Party and Agenda 21 fears.

These ribbons of trails that Washington DC environmentalists are threading throughout America are called GREENLINING (or greenways).   Back in the early 1970’s when the likes of Rep. Mo Udall (also the guy who locked up Alaska, btw) tried to get national landuse planning into federal law (and failed), the environmental statists switched to the concept of ‘greenlining’ to put national landuse in place piece by piece.

Rail-trails are one of the mechanisms they use.  Some local people may see the trail as innocuous (or as a boon to the local economy which will not be true in Washington County!), but what follows will be a clamoring for controls on the land in the VIEWSHED of the trail.   It won’t be long and the county will be pressured into re-zoning land along the trail, or the state will come in to buy more land.  Some yuppies from Washington, DC will say NO hog farms where I want to ride my bike!  And, damn, I don’t want to see old farm machinery or a lot of laundry hanging on peoples’ clotheslines!

And a lot of adjacent property owners tried to claim ownership and raise fears of crime

“Several of the neighboring landowners have been talking and we question whether the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) actually owns the land that it claims,” Daly wrote. “Some of the landowners have documents that they believe mean that when the railroad was abandoned in 1978, the land reverted to them and so does not now and never did belong to the State.

“Other landowners have used and occupied the former B&O rail bed for more than the statutory period of 20 years and therefore under Maryland law they, not DNR, own the land.”

critics had a long list of reasons against the rail trail, such as the high price tag and the possible crime and noise it could bring. 

By July of 2012, after it drew strong protests at a public meeting in Boonsboro, the trail was cancelled again. They even refused state money for a feasibility study.

“That’s the end of it, as far as we’re concerned,” said John F. Wilson, the associate director for stewardship within the Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ land acquisition and planning unit.

During a discussion Tuesday about Maryland Department of Transportation’s offer of $100,000 for a feasibility study for the trail, Commissioner William B. McKinley moved to end the county’s participation in the project entirely. McKinley said there were too many unanswered questions, so accepting feasibility study money “would be wrong.”

BTW, here's a statement from Commissioner Jeffrey A. Cline in January of 2012

"I think it’s a good project, I really do,” 

And here he is in July

“I have no support for this trail whatsoever,”

Anyway, the project is such a good idea that supporters are reluctant to let it go. 

Retired consulting environmental engineer Chip Wood's presentation promoting the recreational trail was scheduled on the Washington County Board of Commissioners' meeting agenda.

Wood asked commissioners to consider the "rights of the public majority" who want the trail rather than the few who want to bar access.

He said the Washington County Department of Planning and Zoning has said there is a countywide deficit for walking and jogging trails, especially in south county, that the rail trail would address.

Wood referred to a letter county resident William Daly wrote five years ago to an attorney about several neighboring landowners questioning whether the Maryland Department of Natural Resources actually owns the land.

Some landowners had documents they believed indicated the land reverted to them after the railroad abandoned a large stretch of the proposed trail, according to Herald-Mail Media archives.

Wood asked the commissioners to have the state review the matter.

Opponents continue to claim they have deeds to the land and that they're concerned about "crime and safety."

Anyway, not to get too far out ahead of things, since even this seems unlikely right now....but if the trail were built, they could then build a trail along the 3.7 mile Antietam Branch that goes around to the east side of Hagerstown past parks and the baseball stadium. And that could connect to a trail built on the ROW of the old Hagerstown and Frederick Electric Railroad which connects all the way to Frederick. Ah, to dream.

Comments

[Purple Eagle]

"Greenlining" - that's a new one to me. These people live in some sort of alternate reality.

[John A.]

Fully agree that this is one of the best rail-trail opportunities in MD, or anywhere. Any recreational trail is boon for the community, but the Civil War Railroad Trail has exceptionally outstanding qualities:

1. Connectivity

Most rail-trails don't connect to any larger trail system, but CWRT would link directly to 350 miles of the C & O Canal and Great Allegheny Passage. This network will continue to expand as connector trails are developed, such as Sheepskin Trail in PA which will eventually connect to West Virginia's extensive and excellent trail system. (One of the most conservative and pro-property rights states, West Virginia has fully embraced rail-trails, with a corresponding explosion in recreational tourism and economic development).

2. Destinations

Another drawback for many rail-trails is the lack of places to stop and sightsee or have a meal. The CWRT would be packed with them. For history buffs there are Harper's Ferry and the Antietam Battlefield, and a little farther south is the railroad town of Brunswick, which boasts a new brewery, walking trails, and a few nice eateries. At the northern terminus is Hagerstown, Maryland's 6th largest city, while Keedysville is a quaint colonial village at the midpoint with a well-preserved and walkable historic district.

3. Accessibility

While traversing a remote and pastoral valley, CWRT would be within 90 minutes drive for approximately 8 million people. In addition, Amtrak's Capitol Limited Service with bike capacity is available at Harper's Ferry, and MARC stops at both Harper's Ferry and Brunswick. MARC Brunswick Line is scheduled to add bike capacity later in 2017, so a person living near any MARC station could ride the train to Brunswick and bike to Hagerstown.

For anyone who loves biking and the outdoors, the CWRT presents an extraordinary opportunity to develop a premier recreational trail.

[drumz]

Once again I'd like evidence, any evidence that a trail "brings" crime.

I also kind of chuckle at the notion that city slickers in DC will be demanding bucolic views along the trail here when local trails like the MBT or sections through powerlines or along highways are pretty prevalent.

[Kolohe]

What if we still need that railroad for a Civil War?

[Wash cycle]

I rode along a rail trail today. Two girls, both younger than 8, were selling lemonade from their backyard without parental supervision. So, yeah, the crime thing is BS.

[washcycle]

Kolohe, since the original RR wasn't finished until 1864, we could fight most of the war without it. But the way things are going, it's not an invalid question.

[contrarian]

Did the girls selling lemonade have the proper permits? If not, they were flouting the law. Prima facie evidence of trail-related lawlessness if I ever saw it.

[me]

MARC Brunswick Line is scheduled to add bike capacity later in 2017. where is evidence for this? i hope hes right.