The Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail (TCB), the official name of the Northern Central Railroad (NCR) Trail, is a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

that runs along an abandoned railroad corridor where the

Northern Central Railway The Northern Central Railway (NCRY) was a Class I Railroad connecting Baltimore, Maryland with Sunbury, Pennsylvania, along the Susquehanna River. Completed in 1858, the line came under the control of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) in 1861, wh ...

once operated. The trail extends 19.7 miles from Ashland Road in

Cockeysville, Maryland Cockeysville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 20,776 at the 2010 census. History Cockeysville was named after the Cockey family who helped establish the town. Thomas Cockey (1676� ...

to the boundary with

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. At the Pennsylvania line, the Torrey C. Brown Trail becomes the York County Heritage Rail Trail (part of

BicyclePA Route J In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, BicyclePA bicycle routes are a series of bicycle routes created in the 2000s to cross the state on highways and rail trails. Routes BicyclePA Route A BicyclePA Route A runs from the West Virginia border south ...

) and continues to the city of

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. The trail is wide with a stone dust surface and the majority of the trail runs along the

Gunpowder River The Gunpowder River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tidal inlet on the western side of Chesapeake Bay in Maryland, United States. It is formed by the jo ...

and Beetree Run. Popular activities on the trail include horseback riding, jogging, walking, hiking, fishing and biking. It is open to the public from sunrise to sunset, seven days a week throughout the year. The trail is also pet-friendly as long as the pet is on a leash. The TCB makes up a segment of the

East Coast Greenway The East Coast Greenway is a pedestrian and bicycle route between Maine and Florida along the East Coast of the United States. In 2020, the Greenway received over 50 million visits. The nonprofit East Coast Greenway Alliance was created in 1991. ...

, a 3,000 mile long system of trails connecting Maine to Florida.

Historical development

Historical significance

The

, built in 1832, ran between

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, and

Sunbury, Pennsylvania Sunbury is a city and county seat of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in Central Pennsylvania's Susquehanna Valley on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and west ...

, and was one of the oldest rail lines in the country. The railway serviced the growing Baltimore, York and Harrisburg industries, had 46 stops, 22 of which were in Maryland, and operated for 140 years. It carried passengers, people vacationing at Bentley Springs, and freight between Baltimore and York or Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. During the Civil War, the Pennsylvania Railroad-controlled Northern Central served as a major transportation route for supplies, food, clothing, and material, as well as troops heading to the South from Camp Curtin and other Northern military training stations. Already in financial trouble, the NCR ceased operations between Cockeysville and York in 1972 after

Hurricane Agnes Hurricane Agnes in 1972 was the costliest hurricane to hit the United States at the time, causing an estimated $2.1 billion in damage. The hurricane's death toll was 128. The effects of Agnes were widespread, from the Caribbean to Canada, ...

battered its bridges. The old bed, which was converted to a rail-trail in 1984, can still be seen today. Historical markers can be found along the trail such as the Monkton Train Station that underwent renovations and is now serving as a museum, gift shop, and

ranger A Ranger is typically someone in a military/paramilitary or law enforcement role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called “ranging”. The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with protecting and ...

station.

History and evolution

In the early 1980s when it was proposed to place the hike and bike trail in the place of the train tracks, a contentious battle raged between property owners and the state. The owners contended that the property was taken under

eminent domain Eminent domain (United States, Philippines), land acquisition (India, Malaysia, Singapore), compulsory purchase/acquisition (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, United Kingdom), resumption (Hong Kong, Uganda), resumption/compulsory acquisition (Austr ...

for the purpose of train tracks, and that once the property was no longer to be used for a train the property rights should revert to the previous land owners. The state prevailed in its fight for the property and the

Maryland Department of Natural Resources The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a government agency in the state of Maryland charged with maintaining natural resources including state parks, public lands, state forests, state waterways, wildlife, and recreation areas. It ...

converted the corridor into a trail which opened to the public in 1984. The trail is used by hundreds of people daily by

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-powered assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. Bic ...

foot The foot ( : feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is a separate organ at the terminal part of the leg made ...

and

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

. The trail also provides access to the

and Loch Raven watershed for boating and

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

. In honor of Dr.

Torrey C. Brown Torrey C. Brown (February 28, 1937 – April 20, 2014) was an American politician who served in the Maryland House of Delegates and was the Secretary of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Background Brown was born in Chicago, Illinois ...

's unconditional support for the trail, it was renamed the Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail, after the third Secretary of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, in 2007.

Trail development

Design and construction

The majority of the trail’s nearly 20 miles is 10 feet wide with a smooth surface of crushed limestone. The trail is wheel-chair accessible. Mile 0 of the Trail is located just off

Maryland Route 145 Maryland Route 145 (MD 145) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Maryland. The state highway runs from MD 45 in Cockeysville east to MD 165 near Baldwin. MD 145 connects the north-central and eastern portions of Baltimore County via Jac ...

(Ashland Road), where the road's name changes to Paper Mill Road, in a small subdivision, where there is a small parking lot. A larger parking lot is located less than a mile north of Mile 0 on Paper Mill Road, and additional parking lots exist along the length of the trail. Warning signals, mileage markers, signals, and railroad signs are placed throughout the trail to warn and ensure the safety of trail goers.

Trail amenities

Amenities include drinking fountains, picnic tables, benches, and portable restrooms. Within a mile of the trail, there are hotels and motels and there is easy access to a bike shop that rents and repairs bikes. In addition to the renovations to the Monkton Station, there is also the Sparks Bank Nature Center, in

Sparks, Maryland Sparks is an unincorporated community that is located in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. It is situated approximately north of Baltimore and is considered to be a suburb of the City of Baltimore. The Gunpowder River runs through Spark ...

Community

Trail supporters

The Torrey C. Brown Trail is managed and maintained by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, a state government agency. Th
Maryland Park Service's volunteer program
is in charge of recruiting volunteers to invest their time in the many trails throughout the state of Maryland. The trail receives state and federal funding as well as donations.

Special events

There are different events hosted every month put together by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, as well as from outside institutions. Topics include local archaeological and plant-life investigations, night-time bike-rides, inner tubing, and a marathon.

References

External links

The Northern Central & York County Heritage TrailsNorthern Central Rail Trail photosNorthern Central Rail Trail Images and Information
{{MarylandTrails East Coast Greenway Rail trails in Maryland Parks in Baltimore County, Maryland Protected areas of Baltimore County, Maryland Protected areas of York County, Pennsylvania Transportation in Baltimore County, Maryland