Rowland Humphreys

Quick Facts

Significance:

Allegheny Portage Railroad contractor.

Place of Birth:

Wales, United Kingdom

Date of Birth:

1795

Place of Death:

The Staple Bend Tunnel on the Allegheny Portage Railroad, today Mineral Point, Pennsylvania.

Date of Death:

1852

Place of Burial:

Ebensburg, Pennsylvania

Cemetery Name:

Lloyd Cemetery

Rowland was born in Wales and came to the U.S. in 1815. He married Catherine Mariner in 1818. He first became associated with the railroad in 1834 when he was contracted to distribute the hemp ropes to the 10 inclined planes.

Over the years, he contracted horses and drivers for the railroad, was a hitcher on Plane 8, and also operated a store (Riffle & Humphreys) in Summitville. For a number of years he operated a farm near Plane 5. In 1852, while walking through the Staple Bend Tunnel, he was crushed to death by a passing train.