Page:Brunswick 100 Years of Memories.pdf/96

CHAPTER 9

Businesses OCCUPATIONS

S - Herb Fox - Jean Greenfield

Prior to Brunswick's incorporation, occupations here included farming, canal-connected work, owning and selling retail necessities oflife, feed-mill-related work, a few railroad-related workers, and probably one teacher at a time. The town's first century has seen many railroad employees; canal workers until the flood of 1924 and economic considerations forced the closing of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal; and one factory whose production over the years changed from umbrella to hosiery, sportswear, pajamas, and woodwork (not necessarily in that order). Otherwise, the basic grocery, clothing, jewelry, shoe sales and repair businesses, banking, the ministry, and teaching limited the possible careers of young people educated in this town. Most of them headed for the big cities. An indication of occupational change has been given by certain details of school field trips to Washington, D.C. One teacher observed that during the decade of World War II, when class field trips were being planned, about 87 percent of students had access to railroad passes. By 1964 the percentages had reversed, and buses were being used instead of trains for field trips. The greatinflux of commuters has increased the population from about 3700 to 5000 in the past 15 years, with a commensurate increase in new housing. A rough glance at railroad employment at the local facility shows erosion in number. In 1990, railroad employees in the local yard would equal to not over one percent of the town's populaltion of 5000. The rest work in the town or commute from 15 to 60 miles to work. Total railroad workers among all Brunswick citizens would amount to no more than two percent of the 5000 population. As a result, Brunswick has become a bedroom community, and occupational opportunities have not greatly increased from those of earlier years.

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HISTORY OF BRUNSWICK 1896 •••

Directory Of 1896 Gives Bit Of History Of Town ••• Brunswick Then Had Five Doctors But No Cemetery; New Yorkers Gave New York Hill Its Name.

An old business directory issued sometime during the year 1896, which recently came to light at the office of J. P. Karn & Bro., local building supplies dealers, was devoted to a bit of historic information of Brunswick, some of which was never known to many residents and had, perhaps, been forgotten by others. The reference is rather brief, but is, however, quite interesting. Mr. Oscar P. Karn, a member of the firm, has furnished the Blade Times a copy of this old article, which is reprinted herewith. It follows: There was once a town of Berlin, and it was a nice, quaint old place, but in 1890 the B. & 0. R.R. Co., finding itself crowded at Martinsburg, W. Va., for yard room, packed up its goods and chattels and moved twenty-five miles farther east to what was then Berlin. Here at once freight yards were established, with a capacity of 4,000 cars, large freight transfer sheds were also built, and before the world had time to think of it, the city of Brunswick had been added to Maryland' s list of municipalities and was booming as was no other town in the State. In 1890 Berlin had a population of 300; today Brunswick has a population of more than ten times as large, and is constantly increasing. Berlin had a store, a merchant mill and a Methodist Church. Brunswick has four drug stores, five general stores, one wholesale hardware and agricultural implement store, a flour mill with a daily capacity of 75

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