Fort Pitt Incline Explained

Fort Pitt Incline
Type:Funicular
Status:Ceased operation
Start:2nd Avenue
End:Bluff Street
Stations:2
Open:1882
Close:1900
Linelength:350feet
Elevation:135feet
Map State:collapsed

The Fort Pitt Incline was a [1] gauge funicular railroad in the Bluff neighborhood of Pittsburgh. Opened in 1882, the incline ran from 2nd Avenue to Bluff Street, a distance of 350feet, and a vertical distance of 135feet.[2] [3] The designer was Samuel Diescher.

The incline was abandoned on 7 November 1900,[4] and afterward sat idle for about three years before fire destroyed it.[5]

Marking the former path of the incline are public steps which ascend from the south portal of the Armstrong Tunnel (at the South Tenth Street Bridge) to the Boulevard of the Allies next to the Duquesne University campus.

See also

Notes and References

  1. http://www.cable-car-guy.com/html/ccpa.html Cable Car Lines in Pennsylvania
  2. News: Brevities. Pittsburgh Commercial Gazette. 23 October 1882. 4.
  3. Diescher. Samuel. American Inclined Plane Railways. Cassier's Magazine. 12. 2. June 1897. 89.
  4. News: Tramway Tied Up. Pittsburgh Commercial Gazette. 10 November 1900. 8.
  5. News: Car's Last Trip at Terrific Speed Down the Plane. The Pittsburgh Gazette. 29 July 1903. 1. Newspapers.com.