In the year 1898, while the Monocacy Valley Railroad was operating successfully between Catoctin Furnace and Thurmont, another railroad was being considered by the citizens of Frederick, Maryland. Their plans were to construct a line from Washington, D. C. to Gettysburg, passing over the Monocacy Valley Railroad and the Emmitsburg Railroad on their way to Gettysburg.

By using the tracks of these two lines, construction costs could be cut considerably. With this objective in mind, a corporation known as the Frederick, Thurmont and Northern Railroad was incorporated by the Maryland Legislature. After conducting several surveys and clearing some legal work, interest in the corporation subsided and construction work was delayed for several years.

Interest in the proposed project was revived again in 1902, at which time the name of the corporation was changed to the Washington, Frederick and Gettysburg Railroad. Additional surveys where then made and in 1905 construction work on the first section between Frederick and Lewistown was begun. This section, a distance of ten miles in the direction of Catoctin Furnace, was completed in 1907, having a maximum grade of 2 and 1/2% and was laid with new 70-pound rail. This line soon became very popular. Steam locomotives were used in hauling passengers and freight between the two communities.

The next step was to purchase the Monocacy Valley Railroad and to build the connecting link of three miles between Lewistown and Catoctin Furnace. Two years later in 1907, this portion of the line was completed, thus providing a continuous track from Frederick to Thurmont, where it made connections with the Western Maryland Railroad. The line between Frederick and Washington and from Thurmont to Gettysburg was never completed.

Not long after the line was completed, the Frederick Railroad Company was formed and took over the operation of the steam railroad between Frederick and Thurmont as well as the Frederick-Middletown Railroad and the Jefferson-Braddock Railway Company.

In 1909 electrification of the Thurmont-Frederick Division was accomplished, making it the first electric railroad in the United States to handle freight cars with electric locomotives. The first electric passenger car made its maiden run to Thurmont this same year, with many dignitaries and company officials aboard.

The unique feature of this line was the standard gauge track, which made possible the routing of freight cars over the tracks, thus providing many services to communities located along the scenic route. The interurban trolley out-paced the horse and buggy.

The coming of the trolley brought with it many changes. There was a period of leisurely excursions into the country. Its appearance, at a time when life was still centered in the local community, and a twenty-mile journey was an adventure to be undertaken with forethought and a definite plan. The trolley soon changed all of this. There were excursions into the country, picnics, scenic rides, and all-day visits to farm friends amid sweet clean country breezes unpolluted by carbon monoxide fumes.

Trolley lines on the Potomac Edison System began as early as the mid 1800's, many originating as small city operated lines. They grew, and through a series of mergers, finally became incorporated into a network of tracks connecting most of the towns in the areas served by the Potomac Edison Company.

Gradually the automobile and the bus came into its own and patronage of the trolley line dwindled. Despite competition there were many who remained faithful commuters to the very end.

In January 1954, it was announced that passenger service between Frederick and Thurmont had declined to such an extent that it would be discontinued. As a result of this announcement, the line was deluged with riders. Not only did the citizens of the two communities develop a nostalgic interest in the trolley - but tourists from California, Florida and Oklahoma, hearing of the announcement, stopped off long enough to ride the rails of the last surviving line of its kind. Hobbyists, hundreds of them, united in clubs, were honored by special runs on Sunday afternoons, all at the regular fare rates.

Several of the extra runs were double headers with more cars jammed to capacity. On some occasions people even stood up for the round trip, just to be able to say they rode the Thurmont trolley in its last days.

Several weeks before the final run, Maurice Ramsburg, conductor on most of the special runs had an experience he will long remember. Up in the Catoctin hills the passengers piled off, set up a tape recorder along the tracks and requested Maurice to bring the trolley down the incline at a normal pace. With whistle tooting merrily and wheels clanging in the smartest style, the sounds of the Thurmont trolley were preserved on tape for posterity

Then came the fateful day. On Saturday, February 20, 1954, the Thurmont trolley made its final run. It was a day of sad nostalgia and for some it brought mist to the eyes and a sentimental ache in the heart.

Although it was cloudy and raining, a large crowd was on hand at Thurmont to witness the final run. Two cars, bearing a hundred or more got in. invited dignitaries, arrived shortly before noon. Paul Smith, President of the Potomac Edison Company, spoke briefly at the farewell ceremonies, conducted on a platform erected for the occasion. "This is a rather significant historical occasion, which has created considerable interest from many angles.

Speaking on behalf of the citizens of Thurmont, Mayor, Ray Weddle remarked that although the trolley service was being discontinued, it would still be preserved in memory and take its place in a part of the rich history of Thurmont's past.

Giving up their trolley service was hard for some of the veteran commuters who had grown up with the trolley line and accepted it as a necessary part of their lives, and furthermore depended upon it for most of their transportation.

Following the ceremonies at Thurmont, the trolleys returned to Frederick where the dignitaries and guests were entertained at a special luncheon held at the Francis Scott Key Hotel.

Although passenger service between Frederick and Thurmont was discontinued, it did not, however, spell the end of the line itself. Freight service was continued for a number of years. Finally, this too was abandoned and in September 1958, the tracks

were removed and this l7-mile stretch of ties and rails between Frederick and Thurmont became another chapter of recorded history.