Around the turn of the 20th century, about 2,000 people lived in Mahanoy Plane, in the shadow of the inclined railroad that hauled coal up Broad Mountain toward Frackville. Breakers, engine houses, and repair shops lined the tracks. What began as a railroad outpost became a bustling Coal Region village. Read the Full Story.
“It is almost impossible to form a word, on account of the noise and confusion caused by about 800 men around me…” Just days into his service in April 1861, a Pottsville, PA ironworker-turned-officer found himself swept into the chaos of war—writing from a crowded Philadelphia camp as soldiers drilled, trains moved south, and the Union rushed to hold itself together. Read the full story.
Built in 1851, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad depot on East Union Street is Pottsville's oldest surviving railroad building — and it has a Civil War history worth exploring. Watch the new video.
“The people flocked in by thousands… it seemed as if its whole population had been poured forth.” On a cold April day in 1861, Pottsville, PA came to a standstill as hundreds of young men marched to the railroad depot and into a civil war that had just begun. Crowds filled the streets, handkerchiefs waved from every window, and the sound of cheers followed the train as it pulled away. The soldiers went into history as the "First Defenders." Read the Full Story.
In February 1832, an Irish newcomer named Patt Gildea sat down in Pottsville, Pennsylvania and tried to explain this strange new country to his brother back in County Mayo. Fresh from Quebec, Montreal, New York, and finally the booming Coal Region, he laid out wages, work, land prices, and daily life in blunt, practical detail — good prospects for single young men, hard choices for families. His letter, later published in an Irish newspaper, offers one of the earliest on-the-ground views of Pottsville’s “Coal Rush” from the eyes of an immigrant still figuring out if he’d made the right move. Read the full story.
I made a visit to the historic Rockville Bridge in March 2023 - still a vital rail link across the Susquehanna River since 1902. In under half an hour, three freight trains thundered past. Beneath the span: a builders’ plaque and spray-paint flood marks from 1972 and 1996. Read the full story.
Travel back to 1863 Scranton through a striking Harper’s illustration revealing its smoky ironworks, bustling railroads, and crowded immigrant shanties as it powered the Union war machine in the Civil War. The contrast between humble huts and wealthy homes illustrates gritty industrial life and class divide in Pennsylvania’s Coal Region in the 19th century. Read the full story.
Step back to 1870s Millersburg, PA with a rare photograph of the Summit Branch Hotel and railroad depot at the junction of the Northern Central and Lykens Valley lines. Read the full story.
Discover the dramatic story of teenage Henry Keiser, who hauled explosive powder through rugged terrain - and survived a life-threatening cattle stampede. Get a firsthand look at the dangers behind building this crucial rail line along the Susquehanna. Read the full story.
Discover a rare photograph capturing locomotive “George P. Upton” hauling anthracite along the Lykens Valley Railroad. Explore Bear Gap’s bustling mines, the route to Millersburg, and how Lykens Valley coal powered East Coast cities. Read the full story.