Two Generations on the Allegheny Portage Railroad

During the early to mid-1800s, the railroad changed the transportation industry and dramatically impacted the nature of the American economy. Entire communities developed around railroad depots-some prospered, while others died with the fortunes of the transportation tycoons who invested all of their finances into railroad construction. Cambria County in western Pennsylvania was one such settlement. This remote mountain location was at the forefront of railroading technology and competition during the mid-19th century. The Pennsylvania Main Line Canal System sought a way to cross the Alleghenies. The system had to compete with the Erie and the Chesapeake & Ohio Canals to secure the lucrative western freight traffic. The Allegheny Portage Railroad, one of the first in the country, was not just part of the industrial age-it was the start of the industrial age in America.