by Doug absolutely loves visiting viewpoints – be it riding in a tram or gondola or funicular, or walking up a tower, or hiking up a mountain. I, on the other hand, usually feel like we’ve paid good money to look down on rooftops. I know, I know. Regardless, Doug’s enjoyment and my desire to keep the person I live with in a van happy led us to the Duquesne Incline in Pittsburgh, Penn. (For those wondering, Duquesne is pronounced doo-kayn.)
The incline opened in 1877; it’s almost 800 feet long but rises 400 feet of elevation in that distance. If you cast your mind back to the gritty days of the Pittsburgh steel industry (I’m currently reading Steel: The Story of Pittsburgh’s Iron & Steel Industry, which brings it vividly to life), you can imagine the workers living at the top of this incline but working at the bottom. When working 12 hours a day, 6 days a week in a steel mill, a shortcut up and down this incline would be most welcome.
The cars hold 18 passengers and travel 6 mph; supposedly Mr. Rogers based the train in his Neighborhood on these cars. As one car ascends, another descends. The incline remained in operation until 1962, when it closed due to financial difficulties presented by the increased use of automobiles. Locals quickly formed a Preservation Society to save the incline, and it has operated as a tourist destination ever since. The ride is just $2.50 each way.
From the top there is, admittedly, a nice view of Pittsburgh and the confluence of the Three Rivers, where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers join to form the Ohio River. In our picture below along the shoreline, you can also see the large coal barges still in operation today (I had no idea!). There’s a small exhibit in the top station, as well, and you can see the machinery that runs the incline in action.
Back in the day there were four total inclines in Pittsburgh, but now only one additional one remains open, the Monongahela; Doug had done it on a previous visit so he didn’t need to ride it again – though he did offer to make the sacrifice for me if I was so inclined. I wasn’t.
