The B&O was considered collateral damage during the Civil War due to its importance to the Union forces. Despite its vital importance, the railroad was improperly secured by Union forces and leaders. This military strategy allowed Confederate commanders to conduct free-range military operations against the region and railroad. The B&O and its president John W. Garrett are remembered for their part in the Battle of Monocacy. Agents of the railroad began reporting Confederate troop movements eleven days prior to the battle. Garrett had their intelligence passed to authorities in the War Department and to Major General Lew Wallace. As preparations for the battle began, the B&O provided transport for federal troops and munitions and on two occasions, Garrett was contacted directly by President Abraham Lincoln for more information. Although Union forces lost the battle, the delay allowed Ulysses S. Grant to repel the Confederate attack on Washington at the Battle of Fort Stevens days later. After the battle Lincoln paid tribute to Garret saying, "The right arm of the Federal Government in the aid he rendered the authorities in preventing the Confederates from seizing Washington and securing its retention as the Capital of the Loyal States."
"There is no interest suffering here except the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad and I will not divide my forces to protect it." - General Philip Sheridan
Raids Involving the B&O
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B&O Locomotives Captured During the Great Train Raid of 1861
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Pictures
-Destruction of a bridge at Harpers Ferry.