A Train Town
~ How the Train Created the Town of Kensington ~
Why do we love the train so much in Kensington? Maybe because our history is deeply rooted in the train and its development in Montgomery County and beyond. You could say it all started with the train ...
The history of Kensington begins with the train. In 1873, the Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad Company opened the Metropolitan Branch, a 42.5 mile line running from Washington, DC to Point of Rocks, MD, a small town located on the banks of the Potomac River and the border of Virginia.
1890 Map of the B&O Railroad Metropolitan Branch
Source: Fava Naeff & Co, Fava, F. R. & Baltimore And Ohio Railroad Company. (1890) Real estate map of the Metropolitan Branch of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company between Washington, D.C., and Rockville, Md., and adjacent land holdings: from latest official authorities & actual surveys. Washington: Francis R. Fava Jr. [Map] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/91680470/.
Close-up View of Kensington, 1890 Map
Source: See above map.A Railroad Suburb
Originally, Kensington was one of nine stops on the newly opened Metropolitan Branch. It was known as Knowles Station, named for property owner, George Knowles. “By the time the first train stopped at Knowles Station on May 24, 1873 an embryonic community of houses and small businesses clustered about it.” [Maury et al.] The area continued to grow, as land developers and owners alike recognized the value of living along the train line.
One of the town's most prominent developers was Brainard H. Warner, a lawyer and founder of the Columbian National Bank. Warner had purchased 125 acres south of the railroad to create Kensington Park, a summer retreat for Washington, DC residents. In 1894, when the Town was incorporated, Warner prevailed, and the town became known as Kensington.
Early Commuters
Initially, the Metropolitan Branch contributed to the growth of "summer colonies" in Montgomery County — places where well-to-do Washingtonians could escape the summer heat of the city and breathe in the fresh air at retreats and summer cottages. And soon, communities along the railroad attracted year-round residents. Smart developers targeted professional men, especially government men, of moderate means, emphasizing the convenience of hopping on the train to head to work in the morning.
The railroad not only carried commuters back and forth to work, but was also the primary mode for transporting needed supplies, such as building materials, store merchandise, coal, and farm equipment, to the burgeoning suburbs.
References:
MacMaster, RK and RE Hiebert. (1976). A Grateful Remembrance: The Story of Montgomery County, Maryland. Rockville, MD: Montgomery County Government and the Montgomery County Historical Society.
Maury, WM, Shidler, BL, Rothwell, J, and Walper, M. (1994). Kensington: A Picture History. Kensington, MD: Kensington Business District Association.
Soderburg, SC. (1998, Jan 1). The MET: A History of the Metropolitan Branch of the B&O Railroad, Its Stations and Towns. [Booklet.]
Header image: Pennsylvania Locomotive, ca. 1868, artist unknown. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase from the Charles Isaacs Collection made possible in part by the Luisita L. and Franz H. Denghausen Endowment, accessed at si.edu.