Incline #6 Overlook

Inclined Plane No. 6

NPS

Quick Facts

Amenities

1 listed

Wheelchair Accessible

The old railbed in front of you is what remains of Incline Plane No. 6. There were 10 inclines on the railroad between Hollidaysburg and Johnstown. In the 1830s, when the Portage Railroad was built, the primitive locomotives couldn’t haul trains up steep grades. The engineers of the Portage came up with the idea to build 11 sections of nearly level track that were connected by 10 inclined planes to raise or lower trains from one level to the next. This made the railroad like a giant staircase up one side and down the other side of the mountain. Each incline was operated by a stationary steam engine housed in a structure like the one to your right. The rail cars and sectional canal boats were attached to a large hemp rope that raised and lowered them. Accidents were common and this hemp rope was eventually replaced by John Roebling’s iron wire rope. The tracks in front of you are reproductions. Notice how there are no stone sleepers here. They would have shifted out of place on the steep incline, so wooden ties were used instead on all 10 planes. Also notice that the rails themselves are mostly wood, with just a strap of iron on top since heavy locomotives wouldn’t be traveling on the incline. On select summer days, rangers can be seen making these wooden ties just like they did in the days of the Portage along the trail to your left.