Before and After: West Penn Rwys & LVT in the Orange Car Years 1917-1952

08/25/2026

One of the coolest stuff that’s gone bridges in the Pittsburgh area has to be the old Dravosburg bridge. (Enhanced for clarity) It originally terminated on PA 837. I always wondered why there was a bank building where it was located. This was a prominent intersection at one time. The street car line stayed high and curved around, making it its way up through Sandy Lake. The stone abutment connection is still there and you can see it when the leaves drop.
The bridge was closed in 1949 when the new higher Mansfield bridge opened and there is no remnants left of this bridge on either side.

07/29/2026

The 700 block of Hamilton St., Allentown 1942 and recently. There are some major buildings that still exist in this block. Lehigh Valley Transit came through here.

07/29/2026

... One thing we may not do enough of because we take them for granted and we did them 17 years ago ... Videos along the streetcar right of way... STG boy no 1 Did this one To show you what You would see riding West Penn Railways north from McclellandTown PA to Brownsville Junction near Footdale...

This video is dedicated to Ed Mitchell, "Mr. West Penn Railway", wh...

07/27/2026

Allentown and Reading traction line in an open car at 8th and Walnut St., Allentown PA 1924

07/18/2026

... before the STG Boys ( Stuff Thats Gone 2007 ) came Traction Boys as we were determined to in-person trace the entire West Penn Railways System... that interest came from the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum's annual calendar which showcased old photos around the system.... in the pre-Internet days, it was difficult to find information, even at the Museum...

Soooo, we never knew there was an interurban electric railway from Latrobe to Derry ! The pink dots on the map note where we explored Coke Ovens.

The photos of the accident are from (c) the Kerr family via Derry Historical Society. Thank you for sharing.

At the moment we need more info and photos of the WCR Co. Any help would be appreciated.

07/17/2026

The Pennsylvania Turnpike originally ended in Irwin PA US 30. This is around 1938, and you can see the trolley poles on Old Lincoln Highway in the distance. It would make a left at Strawpump and head down to Manor PA.

07/12/2026

... back on January 16 2021 the Traction Boys went to Meyersdale PA and Salisbury PA on old US 219 "the Mason Dixon Highway"... we went to Shaw Mines and the village of Romania... at the Meyersdale Library we were welcomed on found some info regarding thhe P&M - the Pennsylvania & Maryland Street Railway which ran from Meyersdale to Salisbury ( we guess it never reached the Maryland border per its charter ) ... the 1921 USGS map shows the " EL. RR " marked in yellow ... in Boynton north of Salisbury there is a building notges as " Salisbury Trolley House "... the B&O RR was prominent hauling coal...

from Gemini search: The railway company was chartered with the ambitious goal of linking Johnstown, Pennsylvania, to Frostburg and Cumberland, Maryland, though only the local Somerset County section was ever constructed. First Operations (1907): Service officially began on October 31, 1907, with a 7-mile stretch running between Salisbury and Meyersdale.End of Service (1924): Facing sharp declines in ridership due to the rise of personal automobiles, the electric trolley line permanently shut down all operations in 1924.

07/02/2026

07/01/2026

... STG Boy no2 had a concept for a 'fantasy' beer label... the Ai tools assisted... fun !

06/27/2026

... Streetcars and Electric Railways of the early 20th Century... Pittsburgh Railways Co. 4203 crossed the old Thornburg Bridge headed inbound to Pittsburgh turning onto Steuben Street... does anyone remember the old bridge ?

Photo: R.H. Brown