Monongahela Incline

Monongahela Incline
Monongahela Incline
Overview
Type	funicular
Locale	Pittsburgh, PA
Termini	West Carson Street Grandview Avenue
Stations	2
Operation
Opened	May 28, 1870
Owner	Port Authority of Allegheny County
Technical
Line length	635 feet (194 m)
Track gauge	5 ft  (1,524 mm)
Electrification	1935
Operating speed	6 mph (9.7 km/h)
Monongahela Incline
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Location:	Grandview Ave. at Wyoming Ave., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates:	40°25′55″N 80°0′20″W
Area:	1 acre
Built:	1869
Architectural style:	Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Other, Second Renaissance Revival
Governing body:	Local
NRHP Reference#:	74001742
Added to NRHP:	June 25, 1974

The Monongahela Incline, built by John Endres in 1870, is located near the Smithfield Street Bridge in Pittsburgh. It is the oldest continuously operating funicular in the USA. It is also one of two surviving inclines (the other is the nearby Duquesne Incline) from the original 17 passenger-carrying inclines built in Pittsburgh starting in the late 19th century. Its lower station is across the street from the Station Square shopping complex, and is easily accessible from the light rail system at the Station Square station.

History

Pittsburgh's expanding industrial base in 1860 created a huge demand for labor, attracting mainly German immigrants to the region. This created a serious housing shortage as industry occupied most of the flat lands adjacent to the river, leaving only the steep, surrounding hillsides of Mt. Washington or "Coal Hill" for housing. However, travel between the "hill" and other areas was hindered by a lack of good roads or public transport.

The predominantly German immigrants who settled on Mt. Washington, remembering the Seilbahns (cable cars) of their former country, proposed the construction of inclines along the face of Coal Hill. The result was the Monongahela Incline, which opened May 28, 1870. Earlier inclines were used to transport coal in the Pittsburgh area, including the Kirk Lewis incline on Mt. Washington and the Ormsby mine gravity plane in nearby Birmingham, later annexed to the city of Pittsburgh.

It is operated by the Port Authority of Allegheny County, which operates the rest of Pittsburgh's transit system. Transfers can be made between the incline and the light rail and buses.

The incline in 1905. The Monongahela Freight Incline is to the left of the original.

Statistics

• Length: 635 feet (194 m)
• Elevation: 369.39 feet (112.59 m)
• Grade: 35 degrees, 35 minutes
• Gauge: 5 ft  (1,524 mm)
• Speed: 6 mph (9.7 km/h)
• Passenger Capacity: 23 per car
• Opened: 28 May 1870
• Renovated: 1882 (with steel structure)
• Original steam power replaced with electricity: 1935
• Renovated: 1982-83 new track structure, cars and stations
• Renovated: 1994 upper, lower stations, restored cars, replaced electric motors and controls

Gallery

The view from the top, upper station on right of picture

• 

  Ascending
• 

  Descending

See also

• Duquesne Incline
• Monongahela Freight Incline
• Angels Flight
• Johnstown Inclined Plane
• Funicular railway
• List of funicular railways
• Port Authority of Allegheny County: The Inclines

External Links

• Lower Station from Google Maps Street View
• Upper Station from Google Maps Street View