In 1912, from the station that stood nearby to your right, you could board a modern interuban passenger coach at 7:34 a.m. and arrive in Georgetown by 8:00 sharp.
It was a new century and Washington, D.C., was on the move. The demand was heavy in the early 1900s for passenger service along the mostly residential corridor of the Washington & Old Dominion. Its owners replaced steam power with electricity and scheduled dozens of commuter runs. Often, however, schedules were not met, cars were overcrowded, equipment broke down, and union strikes interrupted service.
Passenger service never quite paid its own way. In the 1920s the use of private automobiles competed with the W&OD's passenger business, which declined further in the 1930s because of the Great Depression. Concentrating on the lucrative freight business, the W&OD stopped passenger runs in 1941. By 1943 gas rationing during World War II forced the line back into operation.
The last passenger train ran on May 31, 1951. And what were once tiny rail stops along the way have since grown into large communities.
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