Rockville Railroad Station

The Rockville Railroad Station is composed of two buildings: a passenger depot built in 1873 and an adjacent freight depot built in 1887. This complex is one of just a handful of surviving railroad stations built along the Metropolitan Branch of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.

Architect E. Francis Baldwin designed both portions of the station complex in an Italianate style. The passenger building is of red brick construction with a primary gabled central bay and two smaller dormers possessing decorative barge board and a central drop element. The windows on the first floor are characterized by a mixture of square stone headers and pointed variegated stone arches with a central voussoir element. The eaves are supported by smaller decorative brackets. The adjacent freight depot is also of red brick construction. Its design is less austere and possesses both small and large decorative roof brackets, a jerkinhead designed roof, and corbeled details.

The Metropolitan Branch is noteworthy as it helped to revolutionize transportation and trade in Montgomery County, as well as serving as an important factor in the growth of the City of Rockville.

The population of Rockville in 1873, the year the station opened, was 670 people. By 1890, the population had increased to 1,500 residents, primarily due to easy access to Washington via train. The coming of the station area also made Rockville a more attractive stopping off point for passengers desiring hotel accommodations.

The station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. Although it continued to serve as an Amtrak station, in 1981 the station complex was moved about 50 meters to the south away from the rail corridor and rotated 180 degrees to front Church Street. This repositioning was done as part of the expansion of the Metro into Rockville.

Return to the Historic Rockville Story Map

Directions to the next stop: Continue the Tour north on Church Street. Cross Rockville Pike (MD-355), following Monroe Place, then turn left on Monroe Street. Turn right on Fleet Street and stop 3 (Montgomery County Jail) is on Maryland Avenue on your right.