SAVAGE TO WATERLOO.

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I've been lucky enough to operate on several well-known railroads in the area, including Paul Dolkos' new Baltimore-based railroad and Steve King's Virginia & Ohio.  Although I enjoy mainline and TT&TO (Timetable & Train Order) operations, I find switching and yard operations more fun in the long run.

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So my goal for a prototype was:

> B&O/Chessie;

> Compact area with lots of activity;

> A modest-sized yard with lots of nearby industries served by rail;

> Close enough to visit to gather photographs and measurements.

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Searching the area via Google and Bing Maps, I found the small yard at Jessup, MD.  Around it were several industrial parks with networks of spurs, including a long branch to Columbia, MD.

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There's nothing very exciting about the prototype.  It's not particularly scenic.  With the exception of the historic Bollman Truss Bridge preserved at the Savage Mill, there's not much character to the structures or surroundings.  Jessup itself is best known as the location of several state prisons.  Unfortunately, some of the industrial spurs and branches appear unused or abandoned at this time. 

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But for pure operational possibilities the area fit my preferences very well.  It sits astride the busy CSX Capital Subdivision, a double-track main between Baltimore and Washington.  It sees several dozen manifest, intermodal, auto, and other freights along with a number of MARC commuter trains every day.  It is less than 60 minutes from my house, and almost all of it would fit in my basement in HO scale.

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The area modeled begins at the crossovers just south (timetable west) of the MARC Savage station.  A short branch leads to the Corridor Industrial Park, with spurs to several warehouses.  A little further north is Annapolis Junction itself, where the remnants of the junction with the Annapolis & Elk Ridge RR are still in use as part of a Vulcan Minerals plant visible from Maryland Route 32.  Just beyond Annapolis Junction is the Jessup yard.

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Jessup Yard also is the location of a large auto unloading facility, where auto carriers are parked in groups of five surrounded by new cars waiting for dlivery to dealers.  To the east and parallel to the yard is a Waste Management transfer facility served by rail, from which Howard County trash is trucked to North Carolina.  ​

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Further north is a wye leading to the Columbia Branch, and another short branch for the Maryland Wholesale Food Center.  MARC Jessup is the northernmost point – only about three miles of the Capital Sub, but with lots of operational possibilities.

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The excellent FrogRail tour of the CSX East Coast Route covers this area well.  I was also helped by the map provided by the Railroad Signals of the U.S. Baltimore Railfan's Guide.​