Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site

This weekend Country Fox visited the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site for their Living History Day. We visited the museum first to brush up on the history of the Allegheny Portage Railroad. Then we headed down to the Living History encampments and checked out the Engine House 6 Exhibit and the Lemon House. The history of this site is long and fascinating. We highly recommend a visit to the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site.

What is the Allegheny Portage Railroad?

The Allegheny Portage Railroad was the first railroad constructed through the Allegheny Mountains. It operated from 1834 to 1854. The Allegheny Portage Railroad was 36 miles long, running from Hollidaysburg to Johnstown. This sounds quite unimpressive. Only 36 miles? Only in operation for 20 years? How could this possibly be fascinating? How could this be of revolutionary importance? Let me give you a brief history of early America so you can understand why these 36 miles was so important and revolutionary.

A Crucial Event During the Revolutionary War

After the French and Indian War (1754-1763), the British government made several agreements. Their primary agreement was with the Iroquois Confederacy. This resulted in official policies that curbed the expansion of settlements into the colonial mid-west.

During the Revolutionary War (1765-1783), George Washington ordered the Sullivan Expedition. This lasted from June to October 1779. It was a military effort that destroyed the villages of the Iroquois Nation. The Iroquois Nation had settled with the British in the Revolutionary War. The campaign broke the power of the Five Nations of the Iroquois. Survivors fled to Fort Niagara.

As the Revolutionary War was winding down in the early 1800’s, settlers began moving into the newly opened land. By 1810, the population west of the mountains was exploding. In the early 1800’s these new farms and towns were connected to the East Coast by turnpikes, canals and horse drawn wagons. This was mostly funded by private funds or local governments.

When the War of 1812 (1812-1815) began, there was an embargo on bituminous coal from Liverpool, England. This drove exploration of coal mining and solved how to use other forms of coal. Our country needed more ways to ship coal to necessary sites.

Main Line Public Works

In the 1820’s the businessmen and politicians of Philadelphia pushed for a state-funded link between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. This push resulted in a conglomeration of 395-miles of canals and railroads known as the Main Line Public Works. Construction began on July 4, 1826.

When the route hit the Allegheny Mountains at the junction in Hollidaysburg it required a switch from water to land. Here started a series of 10 inclined planes. This also began the Allegheny Portage Railroad. We’ll return to the Allegheny Portage Railroad in a minute.

The Main Line cost more than $12 million. Many human lives were lost as well due to illness and injury. The 395-mile Main Line from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh reduced travel time from twenty-three days to about four. When the Main Line opened, it was considered one of the world’s wonders. However, by the 1850’s more powerful locomotives made rail travel a more effective method of transportation.

In 1846, the PA legislature chartered the Pennsylvania Railroad to cross the entire state. This was to compete with other Railroad and Canal systems in the area. The Horseshoe Curve was completed in 1854 effectively making the Allegheny Portage Railroad obsolete. In 1857 the Main Line was sold to the Pennsylvania Railroad Company who decommissioned it. The new railroad allowed travelers and freight to get from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh in thirteen hours instead of four days.

Allegheny Portage Railroad Construction

The Allegheny Portage Railroad was the first railroad constructed through the Allegheny Mountains. Engineers designed the plans for the railroad and inclined plane system. It took four months for the survey teams using axes and measuring chains to mark the route. Loggers came next, they cleaned a 120-foot-wide path along the 36-mile route.

During this time, stone cutters chiseled away in sandstone quarries to create blocks for the engine house foundations, track support and bridges. Over 2,000 Irish laborers worked twelve-hour days digging out the railroad bed. These workers were paid by the cubic yard. Workers would earn ten cents per yard for sandstone and forty-five cents for solid rock. Started in 1831, the Allegheny Portage Railroad took three years to complete.

What Made the Allegheny Portage Railroad Unique?

Several features of the 36-mile portaging railroad were unique at the tie. First, it had the Staple Bend Tunnel. The Staple Bend Tunnel, America’s first railroad tunnel took eighteen months to dig and blast through 901 feet of sandstone. To find out more about the Staple Bend Tunnel, visit my blog post here.

Secondly, it consisted of ten cabled incline planes, five on either side of the Allegheny Ridge. Initially, trains of two to three cars were pulled up the grade by hemp ropes. These were useful, but they snapped after a while causing a few accidents. Eventually, they were replaced with wire ropes in 1842.

How Did It Work?

Canal boats full of goods and passengers would arrive in Hollidaysburg. Crews worked to move the canal boats onto flatbed railroad cars. These canal boats were called sectional boats and were more narrow than regular canal boats so that they would fit onto the railroad cars.

These railroad cars were in trains of two to three cars. These trains were pulled along by teams of mules or horses. Once the train reached the base of an incline they arrived at the hitching shed. Here, workers would unhitch the cars from the horse/mule team and attach it to the tow rope.

Once attached to the tow rope, which was made at first of hemp and later wire, a stationary steam engine pulled the train up the incline. The steam engine used a system of ropes, pulleys and weights to pull the cars up the incline plane. Once the train was at the top of the incline, it would be hooked to another team of horses or mules. Eventually, steam locomotives would be used, but they still weren’t capable of pulling cars up the incline. A train would be lowered down the incline plane the same way.

Decline of the Allegheny Portage Railway

When the Main Line and the Allegheny Portage Railroad were initially opened, they were a huge success. But after a while, the systems shortcomings became apparent. The cost of operating the system was far too high. It required fifty-four employees, twelve stationary engines, twelve teams of horses and nine locomotives to move a one-section boat from Hollidaysburg to Johnstown.

Maintenance was a constant concern. The pine ties and hemp ropes rotted and deteriorated quickly. After only five years of use, alternatives were being considered. In 1855 the New Portage Railroad was completed. This new railroad didn’t use inclined planes. The Pennsylvania Railroad completed the Horseshoe Curve in 1854. With the Curve complete and new locomotive technology, the Main Line and the Allegheny Portage Railroad became obsolete. These lines were decommissioned.

What lasts of the Allegheny Portage Railroad has been turned into a National Historic Site.

Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site

Established as a National Historic Site in 1964, the Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historic Site has a visitor center and several interpretive exhibits near the remains of the old line.

Visitor Center

The Visitor Center displays a replica of steam locomotive, a life size replica canal boat and the types of supplies likely to be shipped. A film is played in a separate theater space. The film is twenty minutes and explains what it was like to work and travel along the Allegheny Portage Railroad. There is a small gift shop too.

Engine House No 6 Exhibit

Within this exhibit visitors can see the reproduction of the machinery that would have been used to haul trains up and down the inclined plane. This includes a stationary steam engine, the ropes, pulley and weight system and brakes. The current building has the same general shape as the original but is larger to help protect the original foundations.

Living History Days

During our visit, the park was set up to host history reenactors. There were several encampments set up. There were two very nice women showing how wool was processed during the 1800’s. One taught us how wool was prepared and dyed. We got to see they types of natural items used to create dyes. The other taught us about weaving, knitting and crocheting.

Another station taught visitors how they made the rope used to on the inclined planes. On a much smaller scale, the rope was wrapped around some hooks and when a crank was turned it twisted the rope making it stronger.

There were demonstrations on how the stone masons would have cut and worked with the sandstone to make foundations and sleeper stones. Sleeper stones were used to lay the railroad tracks originally.

A station was set up to explain what life and travel along the Allegheny Portage Railroad was like. She talked about the famous people who traveled along the Railroad and what they thought of their experiences.

Outside of the Lemon House, reenactors for the 2nd Pennsylvania, Company B-American Highlanders from the Mexican War (1846-1848) told their story and even did some black powder demonstrations. I will cover the Lemon House in a future blog. It was the tavern and inn at that inclined plane stop.

Going For A Visit

I highly recommend visiting this National Historic Site. The visitor center is very well done and full of fascinating information. The walk to the outside exhibits is easy and handicap accessible. Visit their site to find a list of events they host.