Allegheny Portage Railroad NHS

  In the early 1800s transporting manufactured goods from port city  factories to remote towns then shipping raw materials back was done with Conestoga wagons- a time consuming and costly process. New York solved the problem by building a canal in the 1820s from the Hudson River to the Great Lakes. Ohio soon followed with a canal that connected the Ohio River to Lake Erie. Pennsylvania was being bypassed! Something had to be done but the Allegheny Mountains were a monumental barrier.

  In 1826, the Canal Commissioners of Pennsylvania hired a group civil engineers to solve the problem. They came up with a plan to  build a series of incline plane railroads to climb the mountains and go down the other side. Canals boats would carry cargo to the base of the first incline where the cargo would be loaded on train cars to cross the mountains. On the other side the cargo would be transferred to canal boats to finish the journey. Eventually sectional canal boats that could be loaded onto the rail cars were developed. Travel time from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh was reduced from three weeks to four days. It was also a much more comfortable journey for passengers. 

This is a very interesting place with a lot to explore. Start at the visitor center to watch the movie and see the exhibits. Then take the boardwalk trail to Engine House No. 6 Exhibit Shelter to view a partial reconstruction of the engine house and exhibits that explain how everything worked. A short trail leads to the Lemon House, a tavern that served travelers on the railroad. It has been restored to the way it may have looked in the 1840s.

 

  The visitor center is accessible. The boardwalk has switchbacks to make a gentle slope down the hill to the engine house. Some of the interpretive signs are too high to be easily read. The engine house exhibit are accessible. A paved trail goes to the Lemon House which is all accessible.

  The parking lot has long bus/RV spaces. Railroad  40.45838, -78.5488