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Authors: Jesse Taylor Croft
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the Susquehanna and Juniata rivers—sometimes on the rivers and sometimes on canals—to the state-owned
portage road that crossed the thirty miles of the highest ridge of the Alleghenies. The portage road was a system of inclined
planes—rail cars that were hauled up steep mountain grades by means of steam winches—that were joined by connecting rail lines.
At the western end of the portage road, the traveler transferred once again to a canal boat and proceeded to Pittsburgh.
Even though the state system was an impressive achievement, and despite its greater comfort and convenience, the journey between
Pittsburgh and Philadelphia remained cumbersome, time consuming, and expensive. And so the state system proved to be only
a partial solution to the state’s massive transportation needs. And the canals still froze in winter.
But because the state had invested so heavily in this system, many officials were ambivalent about the competition the Pennsylvania
would soon offer. Nevertheless, from the moment the line was founded in 1847, the state had provided much of the financing
of the line. And now Pennsylvania tracks, which more or less paralleled the state canal and portage road system, had been
laid along most of its planned route, stretching eastward from Harrisburg to near the headwaters of the Juniata River, and
westward from Pittsburgh to near Johnstown. The last, most difficult section of track to lay remained: the mountain division,
which crossed the summit of the Alleghenies, and the 3,500-foot-long tunnel under the crest of the ridge.
It was in this wild and rugged country that John hoped he would be working. And if all went well, Graham, who had the makings
of a superior railroad man, would be working with him. Graham, at his father’s insistence, had obtained a university education.
He had taken his engineering degree at the University of Glasgow, where he had studied under the great Scottish engineer William
Rankine. And he had worked alongside his father for the past year.
David and Alex, therefore, had to be provided for. John wasn’t yet sure what he would—or could—do about his two younger boys.
Perhaps a summer in the wilderness would be good for them. Or perhaps he would be better off finding a governess who could
care for them.
When John and the boys had drawn near the rail yards on their journey to Fairmount Park, the boys picked up the pace of their
walk. They had had their fill of trains and railroad yards. And since they knew all too well that their father would have
a hard time resisting one more spin around the place, they did what they could to hurry him away from it.
“Wait a minute, boys,” John said when he realized what they were up to. “I’d like to stop off at the yards one more time.”
“Please, Father,” David said, “you promised us the park.”
“And I’ll keep my promise. But I would like to take a walk through the yards again.”
“You were here on Thursday,” Alex said. “It won’t have changed.”
“You’re probably right. But I would still be interested in taking a look.”
“Can we wait outside, then?” Alex said.
John took a quick look around, and seeing nothing particularly hazardous nearby, he agreed. Then he walked into the yard.
By this time, John was well known to the various watchmen who took care of the yards during off hours. Thus the current guard,
whose name was Delancey, merely nodded and waved when he saw who it was crossing the tracks.
What John saw this time was little different from what he had seen on his previous inspections. And what he saw now, as before,
he liked. The roadbeds, the tracks, and the switches were well maintained; the passenger cars looked clean and comfortable;
and more importantly, when he looked underneath the cars, the brakes appeared tight and solid and the wheel bearings looked
well greased.
The brakes posed a serious problem. But this was not the fault of the
portage road that crossed the thirty miles of the highest ridge of the Alleghenies. The portage road was a system of inclined
planes—rail cars that were hauled up steep mountain grades by means of steam winches—that were joined by connecting rail lines.
At the western end of the portage road, the traveler transferred once again to a canal boat and proceeded to Pittsburgh.
Even though the state system was an impressive achievement, and despite its greater comfort and convenience, the journey between
Pittsburgh and Philadelphia remained cumbersome, time consuming, and expensive. And so the state system proved to be only
a partial solution to the state’s massive transportation needs. And the canals still froze in winter.
But because the state had invested so heavily in this system, many officials were ambivalent about the competition the Pennsylvania
would soon offer. Nevertheless, from the moment the line was founded in 1847, the state had provided much of the financing
of the line. And now Pennsylvania tracks, which more or less paralleled the state canal and portage road system, had been
laid along most of its planned route, stretching eastward from Harrisburg to near the headwaters of the Juniata River, and
westward from Pittsburgh to near Johnstown. The last, most difficult section of track to lay remained: the mountain division,
which crossed the summit of the Alleghenies, and the 3,500-foot-long tunnel under the crest of the ridge.
It was in this wild and rugged country that John hoped he would be working. And if all went well, Graham, who had the makings
of a superior railroad man, would be working with him. Graham, at his father’s insistence, had obtained a university education.
He had taken his engineering degree at the University of Glasgow, where he had studied under the great Scottish engineer William
Rankine. And he had worked alongside his father for the past year.
David and Alex, therefore, had to be provided for. John wasn’t yet sure what he would—or could—do about his two younger boys.
Perhaps a summer in the wilderness would be good for them. Or perhaps he would be better off finding a governess who could
care for them.
When John and the boys had drawn near the rail yards on their journey to Fairmount Park, the boys picked up the pace of their
walk. They had had their fill of trains and railroad yards. And since they knew all too well that their father would have
a hard time resisting one more spin around the place, they did what they could to hurry him away from it.
“Wait a minute, boys,” John said when he realized what they were up to. “I’d like to stop off at the yards one more time.”
“Please, Father,” David said, “you promised us the park.”
“And I’ll keep my promise. But I would like to take a walk through the yards again.”
“You were here on Thursday,” Alex said. “It won’t have changed.”
“You’re probably right. But I would still be interested in taking a look.”
“Can we wait outside, then?” Alex said.
John took a quick look around, and seeing nothing particularly hazardous nearby, he agreed. Then he walked into the yard.
By this time, John was well known to the various watchmen who took care of the yards during off hours. Thus the current guard,
whose name was Delancey, merely nodded and waved when he saw who it was crossing the tracks.
What John saw this time was little different from what he had seen on his previous inspections. And what he saw now, as before,
he liked. The roadbeds, the tracks, and the switches were well maintained; the passenger cars looked clean and comfortable;
and more importantly, when he looked underneath the cars, the brakes appeared tight and solid and the wheel bearings looked
well greased.
The brakes posed a serious problem. But this was not the fault of the
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