The Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum

Chesapeake Beach Railroad is located in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland at 4155 Mears Avenue, near the Rod 'N Reel Restaurant and hotel. There is free parking available. The mailing address is Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum Postfach 1227, MD 20732 PO Box 1227 Chesapeake Beach may be reached by phone 410.257.3892. In the late 1890's Otto Mears planned a Chesapeake Bay shoreline resort with railroad service from Washington and Baltimore. Mears and a group of Denver business associates designed a resort town with hotels, bathhouses and beaches, casinos, a race track and a 1600 foot boardwalk. The boardwalk was built out over the water and supported a band shell, a carousel, a dance pavilion, a roller coaster and many entertainment booths. Passenger steamers arrived daily from Baltimore during the summer months and tied up at a mile-long pier. The first train arrived in Chesapeake Beach on June 9, 1900, filled with passengers and frieght. The resort fulfilled Otto Mears' dream, but after only 35 years, financial hardship brought on by the Great Depression and the growing popularity of the automobile spelled the end of the dream. On April 15, 1935 the last train left the station. Today, more than 100 years after that first train arrived, the past has been recaptured thanks to the selfless work of local preservationists and the Calvert County Historical Society. Countless hours of labor have brought the original station back to life. A group of dedicated volunteers help the curator ensure that the history of the railway and the resort are not forgotten. Mission 1. To collect, preserve, interpret, and exhibit objects and information relating to the Chesapeake Beach Railway and the towns and resorts of Chesapeake Beach and North Beach, as well as general topics of railroad and local history. 2. Tp preserve and protect the structure of the Chesapeake Beach Railway Station while maintaining the building and grounds as a public space. 3. To provide educational services to include programs, exhibits, audiovisuals, and publications for the use of students, educators, and the general public on the history of the Chesapeake Beach Railway, the towns of Chesapeake Beach and North Beach, railroad technology and history, and bayside resorts. 4. To enhance community pride through identification of citizens with the history and traditions of their community, and to further community relations.