Rediscovering America_ Exploring the Small Towns of Virginia & Maryland - Bill Burnham [135]
The end of the line for the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad is a renovated depot in Frostburg. Dozens of passengers disembark for their 90-minute stop in this small city. But before shopping at trinket shops or heading to a café for a bite to eat, most watch the ingenious method railroads used to turn their engines around at this dead-end stop. It’s called a turntable, and it does look something like a giant record player (for those of you who remember them!).
In a nutshell, here’s how it works: The engine is uncoupled from the passenger cars and proceeds a few hundred feet to the end of the tracks, an area surrounded by a circular moat and railing. A man in a booth engages a lever and, much like a lazy Susan, the turntable platform with the engine perched on top revolves ever so slowly, until the engine faces the opposite direction. Then another switch is thrown and the engine proceeds from whence it came, but diverted onto a parallel track. It passes the passenger cars and beyond them, switches back onto the main tracks, and proceeds in reverse until it’s close enough to couple. When this daily scene is finished, passengers go about their sightseeing in the town that was established in 1812 as a stop on the National Pike.
Around Town
It’s a steep climb up a hill into downtown Frostburg, and many people prefer to stick around the depot itself during the layover. There’s a row of shops in what used to be the Tunnel Hotel, built in 1850 as modest lodging for travelers. A tavern behind the hotel included a cave where the proprietor stored his alcohol. Today’s shops – really a row of individual, rustic rooms with a porch running in front of them – each have a different theme: toys, candles, dolls, quilts, crafts, pottery, antiques and, of course, train souvenirs. The Whistlestop Café serves hamburgers, hot dogs, ice cream, and pork BBQ. Eat indoors or out on various decks and porches. (Frostburg Shops By the Depot, tel. 301-689-3676)
The Thrasher Carriage Museum is next to the depot and houses one of the best antique carriage collections in the country. More than 40 19th- and 20th-century horse-drawn carriages range from a 1914 milk wagon and a funeral wagon to the Vanderbilt Family Sleigh and President Roosevelt’s inaugural carriage. They were all collected by local resident James Thrasher. Open Tuesday-Sunday 11 am-3 pm, May-September; daily in October; weekends only in November and December. Admission is $3 adults, $1 children 12 and up. (tel. 301-689-3380)
Up on Main Street you’ll find more shops, restaurants and the Failingers Hotel Gunther, a must-see landmark. The 1896 hotel was extensively renovated in 1987 by the Failinger family. There are 14 rooms for overnight guests and 19 long-term apartments, each room decorated in Victorian style and uniquely different. Mrs. Failinger really outdoes herself at Christmas, with several trees on every floor. Even if you don’t stay here, they’ll gladly let you walk up the grand carved oak stairway to a Victorian lobby, and go down in the basement to see their museum. At one time the train tracks went under the town, and coal cars came right under the hotel to deliver the fuel. You can also see a small jail used to house prisoners being transported over the Old Trail Road (Route 40) in the early 1900s. There’s also a replica of a coal mine, several rooms of antiques and memorabilia found during the renovation, and a former game cock fighting arena, which doubled as a speak-easy during Prohibition. (11 W. Main Street, tel. 301-689-6511, www.hotelgunter.com)
Dining
The Au Petit Paris French Restaurant is one of finest restaurants in western Maryland, and has a great wine selection. The restaurant is decorated to resemble a Parisian café; the entrance hallway was once a city street that passed through the building. (Main Street, tel. 301-689-8946, www.aupetitparis.com)