Hop aboard for a nostalgic journey through the early days of public transit in Essex and Middle River! This spectacular collection is packed with vintage community memories, classic local clippings, and incredible historical snapshots showcasing the tracks and routes that once linked our neighborhoods. It’s a wonderful look at how these early transit lines opened up the area, uniquely shaping daily life, commuting, and local growth.
View Book #39: Street Cars and Buses on archive.org (opens in a new window)
This binder contains 43 pages of photos, letters and documents pertaining to public transportation in the early years of Essex history.
Click on a photo to enlarge:
We thank our founding members Mr. and Mrs. Alex and Helen Baumgartner, their family, and peers for establishing our premiere Baumgartner Collection. The collection captures a historical snapshot of life in Essex and Middle River, Maryland. The collection contains nearly 300 categorical binders documenting our community activities with articles, pamphlets, and photographs from 1969 through the 1980s. The Heritage Society has scanned the collection to our website to share with our extended community. As we continue to build new collections, we are seeking new materials such as photographs and ephemera that pertain to the community and business history of Essex and Middle River. Please contact essexmuseum@gmail.comif you have historical memories or items to donate or would like to become a member.
Museum photos and clippings come from the Heritage Society Baumgartner Archives and other sources, scanned by Rita Gaunt, museum photos by Sue Carter and additional research by archivist Scott Huffines.
This print archive captures a historical snapshot of life in Essex and Middle River, Maryland. The archive contains nearly 300 categorical binders documenting our community activities with articles, pamphlets, and photographs from 1969 through the 1980s. The Heritage Society has been scanning the collection to our website to share with our extended community.
As we continue to build new collections, we are seeking new materials such as photographs and ephemera that pertain to the community and business history of Essex and Middle River. Please contact essexmuseum@gmail.com if you have historical memories or items to donate or would like to become a member.
Read more about the Heritage Society Baumgartner Archives.