PL&W Train Station & Round House - New Galilee PA

In 1852 the narrow-gauge Darlington Cannel Coal Railroad (DCC) was built from New Galilee, off the existing Ohio & Pennsylvania Railroad (O&P) mainline, extending west through Darlington to the cannel coal fields at Cannelton Junction. Members of the Harmony Society acquired the line in 1860 and cannel mines and ran them for some time. It later became part of an ambitious plan to connect with distant Chicago, but that never came to fruition. In the 1880’s the line was basically extended into Ohio – reaching Rogers by 1885 and Lisbon by 1887. It never went any further. A train station and a small round house/turntable (shown above) were erected at New Galilee and were in service for many years. (c1925) Full Size

In 1896 the various parts of the railroad between New Galilee and Lisbon were reorganized as the Pittsburgh, Lisbon, & Western Railroad (PL&W) – which was incorporated in 1902.The 27-mile line primarily served as a freight hauler for the coal industries near Darlington and the heavy industries in Lisbon. The photo above depicts the PL&W train station at New Galilee. (c1935) Full Size

The Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler, and New Castle Railway (PHB&NC), a narrow-gauge streetcar line known popularly as the Harmony Short Line, initiated plans to purchase the PL&W in 1915. The Harmony Line wanted to extend its line (from Koppel) to New Galilee – and then run along the narrow-gauge track into Ohio. This venture never took place. In 1925 the PL&W was absorbed into the Youngstown & Southern Railroad (Y&S) and was electrified to run streetcars – as well as the steam engines. The above photo depicts the #22 streetcar in New Galilee. The coal freight business pretty much died out in the early 1930’s and streetcar service ended to New Galilee in November 1944. This was the “last ever” streetcar service in Beaver County. The line was generally abandoned soon after. (c1935) Full Size

This map from 1876 shows the location of the round house (marked with red star) on the track running off towards Ohio. The line is marked as the “D. C. C. R. R.” – which later became the PL&W. (1876) Full Size