Oct 13, 2017

Photos and text by Barbara Haddock Taylor

: Justin Simmons, painter at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore, carries a ladder in the paint room, where he is working on restoring the 51, which is a 1935 diesel locomotive. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: A train builder’s plate, cast from waste bronze material, was made by master metal conservator George Harwood at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: George Harwood, master metal conservator, welds a locomotive’s side panel at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: The windshield and wiper on the 51 locomotive, built in 1937, wait for primer in the paint shop at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Leon Crookshank of Glen Burnie, is a restoration specialist and contractor. He is working on a window frame on the “Pioneer,” a reproduction of a horse-drawn railroad car, at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Volunteer Roger Frye, left, and master carpenter Jamie Partridge, right, use a turn of the century bending brake to bend light sheet metal at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: The cast iron gearing of a large lathe, circa 1900, was used to turn the wheel castings for the Pioneer train car replica at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Denny Marron, a long-time volunteer, cleans a train’s brake cylinder cup in the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: A steam-driven air compressor, used for the brake system, is on the front of the 1950 St. Elizabeth steam locomotive at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: The B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop is located on S. Fulton Street in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Metal shavings are on the Monarch Lathe, built in 1946, that is still in use at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: A gear box on a 6-foot radial drill, circa 1930s, is still in use at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Carriage hand wheels move the carriage on the Monarch lathe, built in 1946, which is still in use at the B & ORailroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Signs are in a can in the shop at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Denny Marron, a long-time volunteer, walks through the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Garry Pace, a long-time volunteer, looks out the window of a MARC diesel locomotive that’s in the shop for routine maintenance at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: George Harwood, left, and Justin Simmons, right, carry a metal side panel through the shop for the 51 locomotive that’s being restored at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Leon Crookshank of Glen Burnie, works on the door frame opening on the “Pioneer,” a reproduction of a horse-drawn railroad car, at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: George Harwood, master metal conservator and restorationist for 27 years at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore, uses an acetylene torch to make metal strips for a locomotive’s side panels. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Garry Pace, a volunteer since 2009, works on a train window in the at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: George Harwood, master metal conservator and restorationist for 27 years at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop, is makes metal strips for a locomotive’s side panels. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: A wiper is viewed through the windshield of a MARC 7100 diesel locomotive in the train’s cab. The locomotive is in the shop for regular maintenance at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. It pulls passenger cars during the museum’s excursion rides. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: A bin contains work gloves and miscellaneous parts at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

: Leon Crookshank of Glen Burnie, a retired auditor, is a restoration specialist and contractor. He is working on window openings for the “Pioneer,” a reproduction of a horse-drawn railroad car, at the B & O Railroad museum’s restoration shop in west Baltimore. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/Baltimore Sun)

A dedicated team of master craftsmen and volunteers practice a blend of art and engineering in their work at the B & O Railroad Museum’s restoration shop. “Bringing something back from the dead,” and seeing visitors appreciate their effort is a satisfying reward for their work, says master metal conservator George Harwood.

The shop was built in 2005 after the museum’s roof collapsed during a 2003 snowstorm. The team restores trains and other pieces from the museum’s collection, and keeps the locomotives running for the popular train rides.

The cavernous space, which has room for several giant locomotives, also houses carpentry, metal and paint shops and an expansive collection of antique tools that are still in use.

Travis Harry, director of museum operations, said that an important aspect of the shop is that it keeps alive the trades and skills that are needed to keep steam locomotives running. “Once lost, it is hard to get those skills back and to be able to pass them on to the next generation,” he said.

Visitors to the museum will have the opportunity to tour the restoration shop on Sunday November 5 at 2pm. The tour will be a stop on the train ride that afternoon.

Reconstructing the past at the B & O Railroad Museum’s restoration shop

Leave a Reply Cancel