Every Independence Day is a reason to celebrate, but 186 years ago this year the holiday was celebrated in style with the ceremonial laying of the first stone of the
B&O (Baltimore & Ohio) Railroad. The B&O was the first railroad to provide regularly scheduled service for passengers and freight in the United States. With the most inland port on the East Coast, Baltimore quickly became a leading departure point for travelers (and businesses) headed west. The railroad was also associated with many other firsts, including the first passenger depot (
Mount Clare Station), the first published timetable and the origin site of the first telegraph message.
On hand in 1828 to help "lay" the stone was Baltimorean Charles Carroll of Carrollton, last surviving signer of the Declaration of Independence and cousin of Charles Carroll the Barrister who owned the Mount Clare mansion house and adjacent property where the B&O train yard and station (now the
B&O Railroad Museum) gets it's name.
Marking the first mile west from the future depot in Baltimore to Ohio, the stone was replaced with a new marker and given to museum in 1992, where it can be seen today.
