Pennsylvania Railroad
Philadelphia, Wilmington & Baltimore RR
Baltimore County
Stemmer’s Run Station (North) – Biddle Street Station (South)
Located in the Eastern Section of Baltimore County, in the area of Eastern Avenue.
In 1870, there was a lawsuit in court for a man who asked to be dropped off at Back River Station, instead of Stemmer’s Run where his ticket had listed. and the conductor said that was fine. As the train started to slow at the Back River Depot, the man jumped off the still moving train and fell, hurting himself. The Courts favored the railroad in this case, and the train did intend to fully stop to let the man off the train, but he had gotten too eager and got off the train too soon.
A 1871 Real Estate ad had 336 acres nearby going for $10,100.
In 1893, an ad for “Fairy Grove”, an amusement picnic area, stated it was ” the most popular, attractive and best equipped picnic shore in the State of Maryland”. The Fairy Grove was only ten minutes walk to the Back River Depot.
1894 – There was a suicide near the Back River Depot where a man shot himself in the head and then fell on the P.W.B. tracks.
A 1904 P.W.& B. schedule has the Back River Depot between Bay View Station and Stemmer’s Run Station.
In 1915, a car was struck by a train near the Depot, killing two and injuring two others.
1917, articles called for more freight to be moved through the area.
In 1919 – a mail plane was was attempting to land in the area crashed near the Back River Depot. The plane was destroyed but the pilot was not injured. The pilot apparently brought the bags of mail out of the plane wreckage to the depot so it could continue it’s way to Washington D.C. The plane wreckage, a larger style bi plane, was guarded by a North Point Officer, until it could be removed the next day.
By 1946, stories about Back River were more about it being a waste removal facility.