History comes alive when the EBT Goes to War! In May of 2023, the East Broad Top Railroad Hosted their annual "EBT Goes to War - Living History Event." The event included various displays and demonstrations of military memorabilia from three eras, the Civil War, the Great War, and World War II. Alongside this, the railroad ran steam powered excursions with recently-restored steam locomotive 16.
The East Broad Top Railroad was constructed in between 1872 and 1874 with the purpose of hauling iron ore from the furnaces in Rockhill to the Pennsylvania Railroad interchange in Mount Union. As time progressed the focus of the railroad shifted from pig iron production to coal hauling, as the railroad began to service the numerous mines on Broad Top Mountain. The EBT faithfully served these industries for nearly 80 years. Going into the 1950s, coal fell out of favor for gas and oil, leading to the Ol' Eastie's demise, with official closure occurring in 1956. The railroad was purchased by the Kovalchick Salvage Company, but rather than opting to scrap the line, it was made into a tourist attraction. The attraction was extremely popular, running strong for over 50 years, but by 2011, insurance costs resulted in the closure of the line. With an uncertain future, the railroad sat dormant until 2020, when it was purchased by East Broad Top Foundation with the goal of restoring the railroad to its former glory. Being perfectly frozen in time, the East Broad Top remains as a truly special time capsule, preserving a little bit of Americana.
East Broad Top 16 was built in 1916 but the Baldwin Locomotive works and is the first of the "large" 2-8-2 mikados delivered to the EBT. Being equipped with superheaters, piston valves, and southern valve gear, 16 outperformed her earlier counterparts. She served the railroad faithfully up until the end in 1956, being in the middle of an overhaul during its closure. During the tourist era, 16 was evaluated for restoration, but due to her boiler paperwork being destroyed, 14 was ultimately chosen. Fast forward to 2020, 16 was selected for restoration as it was in the best condition of all the other mikados, with work beginning in 2021. On February 1st, 2023, the restoration was complete, with 16 running her own power for the first time in 67 years, marking the beginning of a new era on the EBT.
Locations:
0:00 Rockhill, PA
1:53 Enyart
2:40 McMullin's Summit
3:22 The Long Fill
7:01 Horne's Cut
7:44 McMullin's Summit
8:42 Rockhill, PA
11:08 Rockhill Station
Filmed on May 13th & 14th, 2023
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