HUNTINGDON COUNTY, Pa. (WJAC) — This weekend saw the third annual "East Broad Top Goes To War: Living History" event at the famous railroad. People got to ride a century-old steam locomotive, tour the historic facilities, and even dress for various time periods.
Nothing quite beats getting to see and ride an old steam locomotive as it originally was, like one from 1916 — all the bells and whistles included.
"America expanded because of railroads," East Broad Top Railroad sales and marketing director Jonathan Smith told 6 News on Sunday. "And so, what you see here at the EBT is one of the most intact and original representations of America's industrial history [that] you're gonna find anywhere else in the country."
People come from around Pennsylvania — and the world — to make a pilgrimage to what Smith calls a Mecca for train history enthusiasts. It's place that seeks to immerse its visitors in America's industrial and war history; and it's a place where visitors seek to immerse themselves. Sunday saw people don outfits from eras the East Broad Top Railroad had significant impact on the country's history: the Civil War, World War I, and World War II.
"The railroad was built in the 1870s and ran right up until 1956 as a steam-powered, coal-hauling railroad," Smith explained.
"There are six communities that all were built by the railroad, served by the railroad that wouldn't exist in their current state without the history of this railroad."
Though, it's not just those bells and whistles that make the East Broad Top Railroad unique.
"You can ride a train, a lot of places around the country," Smith acknowledged. "But one of the things that makes these broad tops so significant, both historically and so interesting ... as a place to visit is our belt-driven machine shop complex."
"The machine shop," he continued, "is one of the largest and most intact representations its kind anywhere in the country."
Smith told us all the railroad's steam locomotives, the freight equipment, and the passenger cars — everything was maintained through this facility.
"There's not a single electric motor in here," he pointed out. "There is nothing that has an on or off switch. Really, everything is powered by the stationary steam engine behind me."
The engine even powered Rockhill Furnace, PA, way back when.
"When you go through those buildings, it is not 2023," Smith said. "It very well could be 1923. You'd have no idea."
However, maintaining that immersion requires upkeep and restoration. The latter, the East Broad Top Railroad is trying to do with that locomotive from 1916.
"As we bring this railroad back to life in its new form, we're bringing tourists here, we're letting folks experience the railroad on a day out with their families. But they are contributing to the economies of these communities as well," said Smith. "So, history repeats itself again."
But sometimes it's the simple joys — those bells and whistles — that bring out our inner child.
"Kids, adults, it doesn't matter who you are. You love train, you just love trains. You grow up loving trains and dinosaurs. And there are some of us that just never grew out of the train part."
For future events from the East Broad Top Railroad, you can click here.
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