Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company Records
Object Details
- Creator
- Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Co.
- Names
- Atlantic City Railroad
- Mine Hill & Schuylkill Haven Railroad
- Collector
- National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Transportation
- National Museum of American History (U.S.). Division of Engineering and Industry
- Names
- Reading Belt Railroad
- Bines, William H.
- Boggs, George B.
- Buckholz, Charles W.
- Byers, Charles E.
- Chamberlain, E.C.
- Davis, N.M.
- Gowen, Franklin B.
- Jamison, Robert
- Keim, George DeB
- Lorenz, William
- Manning, Charles P.
- Nichols, Henry K.
- Rice, George
- Richardson, F.E.
- Royers, John H.
- Steele, J. Dutton
- Thompson, J.W.
- Whitney, E.S.
- Wilson, H.T.
- Wootten, John E.
- Yarington, T.O.
- Zacharias, H.C.
- Place
- Lackawanna County (Pa.)
- Luzerne County (Pa.)
- Cressona (Pa.)
- Harrisburg (Pa.)
- Norristown (Pa.)
- Philadelphia (Pa.)
- New Jersey
- Sumerton (Pa.)
- Cheltenham (Pa.)
- Sunbury (Pa.)
- Reading (Pa.)
- Trenton (N.J.)
- Schuylkill County (Pa.)
- Pennsylvania
- Topic
- Railroad accidents
- Railroad engineering
- Railroads -- New Jersey
- Railroads -- Buildings and structures
- Coal mines and mining -- Pennsylvania
- Coal -- Pennsylvania
- Railroad companies -- Pennsylvania
- Engineering
- Engineers
- Railroad engineers
- Coal -- Transportation
- Anthracite coal industry
- Railroads -- Surveying
- Railroad tracks
- Railroads -- Maintenance and repair
- Railroads -- Signalling
- Transportation
- Railroads -- Pennsylvania
- Provenance
- Collection donated by the Reading Company, Philadelphia, Pa., 1960s.
- Creator
- Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Co.
- See more items in
- Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company Records
- Summary
- Collection of engineering reports and correspondence from the Engineering Department of the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company. The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad was most used for the transportation of anthracite coal within Pennsylvania from 1833 through the early 1970s.
- Biographical / Historical
- This railroad was chartered in 1833 to provide low-cost transportation from the Schuylkill and Mahanoy anthracite coal fields in eastern Pennsylvania to Philadelphia. Main line from Philadelphia to Pottsville opened 1842. Reading expanded by acquiring other railroads, and by 1869 had monopoly of coal traffic from Schuylkill anthracite region. Expansion accelerated when Franklin B. Gowen became president (1869) and attempted to dominate entire anthracite trade. Purchased Schuylkill Canal (1870) to eliminate competition for coal trade; then organized the Philadelphia & Reading Coal & Iron Company in 1871 to purchase and operate coal mines; secured over 40 percent of U.S. anthracite reserves, but debt incurred led railroad to bankruptcy and receivership (1880). Gowen's reckless style drove the Reading into second receivership (1886), and he was forced to resign. Gowen's Successor, Archibald A. McLeod, tried to increase company control over anthracite trade (1892-1893), then control of several New England railroads. The Reading went bankrupt again and McLeod was ousted. In a reorganization (1896), the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad and the Coal & Iron Company became properties of the Reading Company, a holding company. Later additions to system were infrequent and largely confined to short branches and improvements inalignment. Due to anti-trust proceedings, company divested mining subsidiary (1923) and merged wholly owned railroad companies into an operating company. Acquired Lehigh & Susquehanna Railroad 1963, went bankrupt in early 1970s, and conveyed portions of its lines to Conrail (1976). The reorganized Reading Company retains real estate and other non-rail holdings.
- Extent
- 18 Cubic feet (78 boxes, 2 map folders)
- Date
- 1860-1936
- Custodial History
- Tracings transferred to the Archives Center from the Division of Transportation (now Division of Work and Industry), June 12, 1986. Other material transferred from the Division of Engineering and Industry (now Division of Work and Industry), August 1986.
- Archival Repository
- Archives Center, National Museum of American History
- Identifier
- NMAH.AC.0208
- Type
- Collection descriptions
- Archival materials
- Right of way deeds
- Reports
- Letterpress copybooks
- Mechanical drawings
- Estimates
- Financial statements
- Circular letters
- Bills
- Accident reports
- Correspondence
- Citation
- Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company Records, Archives Center, National Museum of American History.
- Arrangement
- The collection is divided into five series. Series 1: Letterpress Copybooks, 1866-1870 Series 2: Chief Engineer Standard Plans, 1904-1942 Series 3: Construction Reports, 1901-1913 Series 4: Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) Valuation of Railroads, 1913-1922 Series 5: Reports and Miscellaneous Papers, 1860-1936
- Processing Information
- Collection processed by Cheryl Megerdigian, 1989
- Rights
- Collection items available for reproduction, but the Archives Center makes no guarantees concerning copyright restrictions. Other intellectual property rights may apply. Archives Center cost-recovery and use fees may apply when requesting reproductions.
- Genre/Form
- Right of way deeds
- Reports
- Letterpress copybooks
- Mechanical drawings
- Estimates
- Financial statements
- Circular letters
- Bills
- Accident reports
- Correspondence -- 1930-1950
- Scope and Contents
- Primarily outgoing correspondence from the Engineering Department of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Company, the remainder being engineering reports and other miscellaneous papers. Series 1: Letterpress Copybooks consists of 219 volumes from various engineers, each with own index (1865-1892): were generated by Chief Engineer, Assistant Chief Engineer, various resident engineers, other lower-level engineers, and the Chief Road-Master. Bulk of copybooks created by William H. Bines and Henry K. Nichols during long careers with the Philadelphia & Reading. Other volumes contain letters and reports by Charles W. Buckholz, Charles E. Byers, William Lorenz, and others. Correspondence covers all aspects of the engineering operations of the railroad, much of it at highest levels, being addressed to the Presidents of the Reading. Also includes one letterbook from John E. Wooten (1865), Superintendent. Series 2: Reports of Chief Engineer to Auditor, 1908-1910; structural design calculation notebooks, 1901-1935; right of way deeds, 1903; and tracings of assorted machine parts.
- Restrictions
- Collection is open for research but is stored off-site and special arrangements must be made to work with it. Contact the Archives Center for information at archivescenter@si.edu or 202-633-3270.
- Related Materials
- Hagley Museum & Library, Manuscripts & Archives Department, P.O. Box 3630, Wilmington, Delaware 19807.
- Record ID
- ebl-1503510305208-1503510305232-0
- Metadata Usage
- CC0
