Baltimore Belt Line pulled by horses along Pratt Street between the B&O's Camden Station and the PW&B's President Street Station. In 1884, the PW&B was purchased by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), a major rival of the B&O, and the PRR cut off the connection. The B&O then proceeded to build its Philadelphia Branch (formally known as the Baltimore and Philadelphia Railroad) to connect to the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, in turn connecting with the Central Railroad of New Jersey for B&O's New York service. The combination also provided a connection to the Staten Island Railway, which served as the terminal switching company for
New Jersey Avenue Station NW & 2nd Street NW starting in 1835. On May 31 1850, the Washington Board of Aldermen and Common Council approved a resolution for the removal of the old B&O Depot from Pennsylvania Avenue NW & 2nd Street NW. This was the primary goal of the resolution. Here are the conditions approved by the Council. The B&O Railway Company would have to: In exchange, the City Council would grant the B&O Railway Company the right to use steam-propelling cars on the line in the City of Washington on the current line for up to thirty years as it had done