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Princeton University Library Catalog
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Pennsylvania Coal Company : photographs of the gravity railroad near Scranton : photographs, 1950.
Compiler
Hulbert, Edward Phinney
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Format
Visual material
Description
.20 linear ft. (1 half-size archival box)
Availability
Copies in the Library
Location
Call Number
Status
Location Service
Notes
Special Collections - Manuscripts Collection
C0938 no. 346
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Details
Subject(s)
Pennsylvania Coal Company
—
History
—
Sources
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Coal mines and mining
—
Pennsylvania
—
Scranton
—
19th century
—
History
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Railroads, Gravity
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Pennsylvania
—
Scranton
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19th century
—
History
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Former owner
Greene, Arthur Maurice, 1872-1953
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Getty AAT genre
Photographs
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19th century
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Compiled/Created
1950.
Biographical/Historical note
Gravity railroads preceded steam locomotives by about a decade. The term refers to cars moving along wood and iron tracks, descending down inclined planes only by the forces of gravity, and returning by a cable or pulley system. They were used most notably in the transportation of anthracite coal from northeastern Pennsylvania mountain tops. Initially, horses or mules powered the return trip, which were later replaced by steam engines. The earliest gravity railroads had single tracks, which limited traffic, and rope or hemp cables that broke frequently. The Pennsylvania Coal Company's gravity railroad was in operation between lower Pittston and Hawley (Pa.) from 1850 to 1884.
Summary note
Consists of ten photographs of the Pennsylvania Coal Company Gravity Railroad, which was used to transport coal from mines near Scranton, Pa. Each photograph is accompanied by a typed explanation of the scene depicted. The photographs and the descriptions were used in a paper published for the Lackawanna Historical Society in 1949 by Edward Hulbert (Princeton Civil Engineering Class of 1900), titled "The Pennaylvania Coal Company Gravity Railroad." On the description of photograph no. 3 is an ink inscription indicating the purpose of the photographs and noting that they were presented to Arthur M. Greene, Jr., in July 27, 1950.
Included with the photographs is a letter, dated July 27, 1950, from Hulbert to Princeton University's first dean of the School of Engineering, Arthur Maurice Greene, Jr., reminding Greene of his talk during the recent Princeton University reunion about the gravity railroad. A penciled response by Greene to Hulbert is on the verso.
Source acquisition
Gift of Dean Arthur Maurice Greene, February 21, 1951. AM 14308.
Statement on language in description
Princeton University Library aims to describe library materials in a manner that is respectful to the individuals and communities who create, use, and are represented in the collections we manage.
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