This Bridge Started a War in Pittsburgh 

I've been working on this video for months, and I'm really pleased with how it turned out. But as always, I learned something far too late into the editing process to fit it in. Here is some more information about and a good summary of the subject if you want to read it: journals.psu.edu/wph/article/download/2352/2185/2199

Making sense of Pittsburghs complicated railroad history is no easy task, but you explained it well. I especially liked the scenes from the Seldom Seen Greenway, a place that I enjoy visiting from time to time. Thanks for posting.

I went through the Wabash tunnel 1 time. I thought I was breaking the law because it was HOV for years and I was by myself. Later a friend informed me it was open for all traffic

2:35 Noles referencing Jay Gould: "His M.O. was basically buy up railroads, turn a profit, do it again and again, and then die-- and that is exactly what he did." Such an excellent turn of phrase, sir.

So glad I found this video. I always wondered about the history behind those bridge piers, every time I drive past them.

This is the finest video produced on the Railroads of Pittsburgh . I am 60 years old and have been on or around all of them . My Uncle worked on the Montour Rail most of his life . I have always admired the two Norfolk & Western Bridges crossing the 376 Highway . Absolutely enjoyed your video . I heard a Man bought the Wabash bridge pier for $250.000 ? Please , Do more Railroad History . Thank You ! And yes , We used the Wabash tunnel just about every Weekend to travel from the South Side to Coraopolis . Its pretty neat as how it travels downhill towards Route 51.

Great Pittsburgh history lesson! I was born & raised here and never knew the real story about those piers! You really find some cool places too! Thanks for sharing!!

Love your videos. I moved here to pitt from colorado last year and it's great to hear about these lesser-know stories in the region's history

Well researched and narrated- this is like a "holy grail" for obscure Pittsburgh transportation/railroad history, much of which is quickly becoming just a small footnote in our history (ie West Side Belt Railroad, Little Saw Mill Run RR, Skybus, etc) Good job on bringing much of it to light! Excellent video!

I’ve fished at the opening spot of this video so many times it’s crazy. It’s a great spot to pull right up to Monongahela River in your car & fish. Plus the sights of the river are awesome. Many of the old Paddle Boats are docked across the river. So if you are into old Steam style paddle boats this is a spot for you. Big game fish as well as the river staples such as Golden Carp & just about every Catfish known to any fishermen. Thanks for posting the video. 👍🏻👍🏻 #pittsburghstrong

Great video! The Wabash tunnel is a hidden gem. A secret shortcut to Rt 51 via Woodruff St when the Liberty tubes are backed up or closed due to heavy traffic or an accident.

I travel through this tunnel a few times a week mainly because I love Pittsburgh tunnels and want to make an effort to travel through them at least once a week lol.

Railroads have figured in my life in Pittsburgh. There is a story in our family, don't know how true it is, that one of my ancestors fought in the Civil War, came home without a scratch, and was run over by a train in the Strip District. When I was a kid the railroad bulls used to chase us when we tried to cross the tracks to get to the Allegheny to fish. Then I studied chemistry and had a career manufacturing coatings and coal antifreeze for Norfolk Southern. Great video, enjoyed it. Pittsburgh has a fascinating history, I'm looking forward to more.

My family lived in Sheraden, Crafton and Carnegie. Many long-term railroad employees. We're living in Georgia now but I still love Pittsburgh. Love Yuns.

I've been in the wabash tunnel. The coolest thing about it is that once you're in the tunnel, you can go as fast as you please, bc there is no one/nothing to monitor your speed in the tunnel.

Yes, I have driven through the Wabash Tunnel!

Thank You Again from Beaver County!!! Keep em coming son, you are helping a lot of us keep track of our awesomely ecclectic Western Pennsylvania history. If you were ever gonna pick a rail line to hike and walk the annals of history, it would be the old P L and E.

Great video, on my mother’s side I have a connection to the Wabash, my Great Grandfather and Grandfather work for the Wabash and the the PWV. I got to go down to Rook and ride the engines around. A good book if you can find it is “The Pittsburgh & West Virginia” The Story of the High and Dry, by Howard V. Worley. jr. and William N. Pellet, Jr.

Drove through this tunnel in May during PGH Marathon Weekend. Was a bit spooky with lack of traffic but was fun!

11:51 I'm in frickin' stitches 🤣 I really hope your channel blows up, you deserve it!

Lived here all my life and spent a lot of time driving under and over these train tracks without any idea of who built them, what they were built for and where they went. It was the Wabash this entire time. Nice video. For everyone I know their biggest complaint about Pittsburgh was that the public transit system sucked. Who’s to say what would it have been like if the Wabash would have stuck around and would have been added onto the years to follow. I would have liked to see that. But railroad companies weren’t interested in serving the public like that. Shame.

I have traveled through the Wabash tunnel many times. Great video!

Thank you for this. Never knew that the Beechview Seldom Seen Greenway exist and I live nearby. Going to go see those cool bricks soon.

I've driven through the Wabash tunnel! I didn't know until watching this video that it was an old railway tunnel.

Awesome video. I've been through the Wabash once years ago. Pittsburgh has a lot of great history.

Great video! I've been through the Wabash a bunch of times. I make a point to go through when it's open just to change things up a bit. And it's convenient for getting to/from the South Side.

happy to be like number 412, keep up the great content!!

Here's a related side story about the Wabash and Gould. The President of the Wabash and "father" of the WPT was a man named Joseph Ramsey, who ovewrsaw the design and building of the WPT. Ramsey also oversaw the planning of a new Gould line from Wellington, Oh on the WLE to access the new steel mill and the port in Lorain, Ohio on Lake Erie. In short, Ramsey unsucessfully tried to wrest control of the Wabash from Gould. Ramsey then left the Wabash and started building his own line from Wellington to Lorain, called the Lorain and Ashland, and the great "pi**ing match" between the 2 men was on! Gould immediately started work on his Lorain and West Virginia line. During 1905 and 06 the 2 railroads were built roughly parallel to each other their entire length, at one point mere feet apart and even crossing at one point. The tales of legal wrangling, shady deals and even sabotage are quite interesting. Both lines were completed to Lorain in 1907, but the Ramsey line sat unused for almost 10 years because he couldnt get a connection with the Big Four/NYC in Wellington nor, of course with the WLE. Goulds L&WV was quite successful from the start. Ramseys L&A was renamed the Lorain, Ashland and Southern and he eventually connected it to the Pennsylvania near Big Prarie, Oh. in about 1916. (He bought an existing line from Big Prarie to Ashland, Oh then connected it to his LAS in Wellington.) Goulds LWV still mostly exists today, part of it is a tourist line. Ramseys LAS was abandoned in 1925 and eventually scrapped during WWII. There's a great book dealing with Joseph Ramsey and the LAS called The Rattlesnake and The Ramsey. You might find it pretty interesting.

Great Stuff... Thank You Sir! My Dad worked for Aliquippa & Southern (J&L Steel/LTV) most of his life... we always heard bits & pieces of Pittsburgh railroad history around the family. Mostly the steel mill short lines in Aliquippa, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Mahoning Valley... but he knew all this history. Wished I'd have appreciated it more at the time... he'd be applauding your efforts on this story & smiling with quiet satisfaction. Maybe a look at those lesser known workhorse lines in the future... if you can find any real information? Subscribed either way. The 'greenway' is right down the road from me... had no idea. Be visiting soon. Cheers!

So the zebra swallowtail was last sighted in Pittsburgh somewhere a few miles upstream on Sawmill Run. I love learning more context of the area because specific incidents affected the natural world. Railroads allowed faster development that was devastating though it sounds like Gould has a much smaller hand in our area. I can take you out on the rivers in my canoes. There’s a lot to see in that regard that I know that you could make sense of.

Having hiked a lot of the cnj, When I was Young, (The Mine HIll area) moving to PGH and discovering seldom seen was a blast, trying to figure out that junction is a trip.. I still need to hike the lower line from seldom seen to the west end viaduct, which I hope they never tear out as it is stunning. The one winter I did hike a bit of the lower line and the rock cuts are breathtaking.

I like the content and I have been through the Wabash tunnel about 10 times a year

really ashame that the Wabash building is not still in existence in Pittsburgh. It would be a centerpiece of the downtown architecture

Loved the video thx for explaining everything

Went through that tunnel a few times, actually. It’s pretty cool knowing the history of it, hoped the tunnel was railroad originated with that name. Turns out it is!

I enjoy Pittsburgh history very great exploration video

The Wabash tunnel needs a forced traffic feed in the afternoon. Smithfield bridge is the obvious one but that has its own issues. Fort Pitt would be a massive redirection and probably counterproductive. Maybe take some partial traffic from the Liberty br?

These videos are great. Thanks!

27:15 great video!! I learned a lot about topics I thought I already knew! I use the Wabash tunnel all the time. I love it!

I've totally driven that tunnel, had family visiting and we wanted to visit one of the restaurants up on mount washington, somehow ended up riding thru it in a roundabout sorta way! was real fun, love your videos btw... if you haven't done anythingab out Jane Grey Swisshelm please do, been living Swissvale, & swisshelm park for decades now and have always wondered about that lady and can barely remember whats on her historical marker on braddock ave

Pure GOLD at 4:41 ...totally relatable!

Driven through it a few times, its a proof of government stupidity. The problem with this as a FT PITT bypass is that, inbound at least you have to dealt with all the traffic issues that slow you down anyway using this tunnel.. A few minutes more down 51 and you hook into 376 and go through the Ft Pitt Tunnel anyway, so this being some sort of bypass is just dumb. However, on the rare occassion you are at either end of it and its open in the direction you want to travel, it will get you from 51 to Carson street quickly.... if, and this is a big if, its open, and open in the direction you want to travel.

Keep up the great work! I look forward your work nice job

Wabash tunnel is great. I had to go to Greentree from the city at around rush hour. going through Wabash there was no traffic at all

I've driven through the Wabash tunnel a bunch and would have liked to more, but it seems always be closed on the side of the tunnel I want to enter.

I love your videos anoles!

This pleases my Pittsburgh-oriented autistic special interest

Drive the Wabash tunnel frequently, if the South end could be connected to bike infrastructure, would make an awesome bike route!

Awesome video and I just subscribed to your channel. I'm a railfan and live in Columbus Ohio. I love Pittsburgh and all the rail lines that lead to and pass thru the city. Lately I've been trying to find a huge/tall cantilever truss type bridge spanning the Monongahela River and used by the Union RR. I've been using Google maps and views and have not found the bridge. Could you possibly help me find this bridge? All the railroad bridges I have found are the conventional truss design using multiple trusses to span the river. Hopefully this bridge still exists. Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide.

Very interesting!

I have MET people who've claimed to have driven through the Wabash Tunnel.

You should do a video on the presidents funeral train that came through Fallston, Pa and killed a couple railroad workers on the PL&E bridge above the outpour of Brady's run into the Beaver river. I think I read the story in 'Rivers of Destiny'

Excellent, and mostly correct.

The Wabash bridge pier on the downtown side was sold to an unknown buyer last year for 300k. Not sure what they're planning to do with it.

I've driven through the Wabash tunnel plenty of times. But always when I was just on a whimsical explore of the area. I have never commuted through it, or driven though it because it was the shortest way between 2 points. I suppose it would be useful for people in the south hills trying to get to Station Square. But why would anyone want to go to Station Square? :)

audio needs a little fine tuning my guy

> UPMC Too real.

This local nerd shit pumps me up.

Cool

Great video! Oh no, you di'int!!

Anyone who says, "eks setera" and then swallows into the microphone should stick to typing.

love the long vid! i use the wabash tunnel all the time. its a great shortcut to avoid liberty tunnel traffic