John Mifflin Hood was an American railroad executive. Hood was President of the Western Maryland Railway

Western Maryland Railway

The Western Maryland Railway was an American Class I railroad which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became part of the Chessie System in 1973 and ceased operating its lines...

 (WM) from 1874 to 1901. In 1901 he became President of United Railways and Electric Company

United Railways and Electric Company

The United Railways and Electric Company was a street railway company in the Baltimore Metropolitan Area of the U.S. state of Maryland from 1899 to 1935....

, a streetcar company in Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

.

Life and early career

Hood was born in Howard County, Maryland

Howard County, Maryland

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*62.2% White*17.5% Black*0.3% Native American*14.4% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.6% Two or more races*2.0% Other races*5.8% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

, near Sykesville

Sykesville, Maryland

Sykesville is a town in Carroll County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,197 at the 2000 census.-History:The land on which Sykesville sits started out as part of a Springfield Estate, owned by wealthy Baltimore shipbuilder William Patterson...

, on April 5, 1843. He studied civil engineering

Civil engineering

Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including works like roads, bridges, canals, dams, and buildings...

 and worked as an engineer on construction projects for several railroads in the mid-Atlantic

Mid-Atlantic States

The Mid-Atlantic states, also called middle Atlantic states or simply the mid Atlantic, form a region of the United States generally located between New England and the South...

 region, including the Philadelphia and Baltimore Central Railroad

Philadelphia and Baltimore Central Railroad

The Philadelphia and Baltimore Central Railroad was a railroad that operated in Pennsylvania and Maryland in the 19th and early 20th centuries...

, where he was appointed Superintendent and Chief Engineer.

Western Maryland Railway

Hood joined the Western Maryland Railway as Vice President and General Manager in 1874, and later that year he became President of the company. During his career at the WM he led the company in its transformation from a local to a major regional railroad, The WM built 270 miles (430 km) of new rail lines and the extent of its territory expanded from its initial Baltimore-to-Hagerstown, Maryland

Hagerstown, Maryland

Hagerstown is a city in northwestern Maryland, United States. It is the county seat of Washington County, and, by many definitions, the largest city in a region known as Western Maryland. The population of Hagerstown city proper at the 2010 census was 39,662, and the population of the...

 route to include new lines in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

 and an important new connection with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...

. He oversaw a major improvement in the railway's financial condition. During his tenure the company's annual gross earnings

Earnings

Earnings are the net benefits of a Corporation's operation. Earnings is also the amount on which corporate tax is due. For an analysis of specific aspects of corporate operations several more specific terms are used as EBIT -- earnings before interest and taxes, EBITDA - earnings before...

 increased from about $218,000 in 1874 to $2.1 million in 1902.

United Railways and Electric Company

Hood joined United Railways in 1901. At that time the company's infrastructure was significantly deteriorated, and Hood oversaw extensive renovations as well as expansions of the system. He managed a rebuilding of the system after the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904, which had destroyed over 1,500 buildings.

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