Mt. Penn Gravity Railroad

Yet, there were parks and wineries scattered on the mountainside. And in the summer, the wooded trails gave hikers a cool afternoon and stunning views.

Steam Engine ready to leave the station at Pendora Park

Coasting Down from the Summit

Trolley car at the Summit (after switching to electricity)

Tower Hotel

Summit House

Summit House and Wm. Penn Memorial Tower after the Railroad was Paved Over

In 1890, the Chamber of Commerce came up with an idea to make the mountain available to all of the citizens. They decided to build a railroad to carry passengers to the top of the mountain.

And so, the Mt. Penn Gravity Railroad was born.

The railroad consisted of 7.5 miles of track. Starting beside Pendora Park at the south end of Mt. Penn, there were 2.5 miles of track to the summit of the mountain, then 5 miles of track for the return trip back to Pendora Park. The entire trip took about 45 minutes.

The train would consist of a steam-powered engine and one or two trolley cars. (Later the trolleys themselves were powered by electricity.) The engine would leave the station located beside Pendora Park and pull the trolley to the summit where passengers could disembark for a scenic view of Reading.

From here, the engine would disconnect from the trolley and return to Pendora Park along the same track that it ascended. While the trolley would continue along, by itself, coasting down the other 5 miles of gradually-descending track for its return trip, using nothing but its brakes to control its descent. Its average speed on its descent was about 12 mph.

Along the way there were a few places where the trolley would stop and drop off or pick up passengers who wanted to picnic on the mountain. Also, there were a few winerys along the mountain where passengers could stop and taste the wares.

At the summit of the mountain throughout the years have been erected two hotels. These were built to draw the interest of more people to riding the gravity railroad. The Tower Hotel was built in 1889. The Summit House was built later. These hotels held dances with live bands. It was a treat on Saturday night to take the railway to the top and dance the night away. The Tower Hotel burned in a spectacular fire in 1923. The Summit House was finally demolished in 1959. The William Penn Memorial Tower (which still stands) was built in 1939.

It is estimated that up to 2000 people rode on the railroad on the average weekend and up to 80,000 people per year.

At one point, there were even amusements at the summit.

- TODAY -

Today, about half of the railroad right-of-way has been paved over, some of it has been bought by private homeowners, but some has been all but lost to the woods.

The paved-over portions include -

1. Skyline Drive - When it was built to bring modern automobiles to the top, it was built overtop of some of the right-of-way. The section from a half-mile south of the summit to List Road was originally the gravity railbed.
2. List Road - The whole road was built by just paving over some more of the railroad bed.
3. Stokesay Castle - The drive into it was once a part of the right-of-way.
4. Glen Road - was paved right over top of the right-of-way.
5. Haag Road - A small portion was originally the railroad right-of-way.

1. Gravity Railroad of Yesteryear

2. Tragedy on "the Gravity"

3. Virtual Tour of the Gravity Railroad

4. What's Left of "the Gravity" Today ?

5. Pictures of "the Gravity" Today

6. Follow Us as We Hike the Trails and Look for Ruins