Information Panel: The Iron Horse Wins

Quick Facts

Amenities

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

Work on the railroad and canal progressed slowly at first, but by 1834 both companies had completed construction to a point opposite Harpers Ferry. The canal had won the race to this point, and it continued up the Maryland side of the Potomac.
The B&O Railroad, plagued by land disputes with the canal, cross the Potomac at Harpers Ferry in 1837 and rapidly pushed on. By 1842 it reached Cumberland, Maryland, and a decade later the railroad was open to Wheeling on the Ohio River.
Business boomed at Harpers Ferry with the arrival of the railroad. Refrigerated cars brought oysters and other luxuries to the town. Thousands of travelers visited Harpers Ferry as it became a gateway to the Ohio Valley.
The Civil War shattered Harper Ferry's prosperity. Much of the town was destroyed, and Confederate raiders constantly sabotaged the railroad. Despite the war, the railroad escaped permanent damage, and the B&O survives today as a main artery of transportation in the United States.