Mount Gretna Narrow Gauge Railway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Mount Gretna Narrow Gauge Railway was a 2 ft (610 mm) gauge narrow gauge tourist railroad in the state of Pennsylvania that operated between 1889 and 1916. It was built by the Cornwall & Lebanon Railroad, who earlier had established a station and picnic ground at Mount Gretna, Pennsylvania. Railroad president Robert H. Coleman decided that a narrow gauge railroad to the top of nearby Governor Dick Mountain would provide an additional tourist draw, and in addition could service the Pennsylvania National Guard rifle ranges nearby. The line was built to the rare (in North America) and very narrow gauge of 24 inches. Locomotives, apart from an early and unsuccessful 0-4-4 Forney locomotive, were three 4-4-0 "American" types, the only 24-inch gauge 4-4-0s ever operated in North America.
At first the railroad was popular, but once the novelty had died down the tourist trade took a decline, and eventually the railroad only continued operation for the National Guard's rifle range. A serious accident in 1915 killed off that traffic, and the tiny railroad ceased operation in the summer of 1916, shortly after its parent company's purchase by the Pennsylvania Railroad.
