Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Station

After visiting the Antietam battlefield and a wounded Union general in Frederick, President Abraham Lincoln gave a brief speech here on October 4th, 1862, before boarding a train to Washington. The Frederick passenger station of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad was constructed in 1854, replacing an older station. During the Civil War, the station was a vital transportation hub for troops and supplies. The station witnessed several notable events. In 1859, a militia company from Frederick boarded a train here for Harpers Ferry to join the fight against John Brown and his raiders. Two years later, in September 1861, several pro-secession members of the Maryland Legislature, then meeting in Frederick, were arrested and placed on trains here to be taken to Baltimore.  Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney’s funeral car arrived here on October 15th, 1864.  But perhaps the most illustrious event at the train station occurred in 1862. President Abraham Lincoln arrived in Frederick on October 4, 1862, after visiting the Army of the Potomac at Sharpsburg following the Battle of Antietam. Lincoln arrived in an ambulance wagon, and visited Union General George Hartsuff at the Ramsey house on Record Street, where Hartsuff was recovering from a wound received at Antietam. As Lincoln and his party made their way to the train station for the return trip to Washington, “a vast concourse of people” assembled to see the President.  Before the train departed, Lincoln appeared on the rear platform of his car and gave a brief speech:

“-CITIZENS,—I see myself surrounded by soldiers and by the citizens of this good city of Frederick, all anxious to hear something from me. Nevertheless, I can only say—as I did elsewhere five minutes ago—that it is not proper for me to make speeches in my present position. I return thanks to our gallant soldiers for the good service they have rendered, the energies they have shown, the hardships they have endured, and the blood they have so nobly shed for this dear Union of ours. And I also return thanks, not only, to the soldiers, but to the good citizens of Frederick, and to all the good men, women, and children throughout this land for their devotion to our glorious cause. And I say this without any malice in my heart toward those who have done otherwise. May our children, and our children’s children, for a thousand generations, continue to enjoy the benefits conferred upon us by a united country, and have cause yet to rejoice under those glorious institutions bequeathed us by Washington and his compeers! Now, my friends—soldiers and citizens—I can only say once more—Farewell!”

The station is now home to the Frederick Community Action Agency.