Welcome to the Strasburg rail road!
When the Philadelphia & Columbia Railroad (P&C) began construction of its 82-mile rail line from Philadelphia to Columbia, Pennsylvania, in 1831, it circumvented the town of Strasburg by nearly five miles. It meant a near deathblow to the commercial and agricultural interests in Strasburg that heretofore helped rank Strasburg as the most populous and richest town in Lancaster County surpassing even the county seat, Lancaster.
In response to the political kerfuffle that followed, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania granted a charter in the summer of 1832 to create the Strasburg Rail Road so that the businesses and citizens in Strasburg would have a direct rail connection to the P&C’s mainline, thus saving their influence and profitability in the larger Lancaster community.
History records little of what happened with the Strasburg Rail Road in the 20 years after its charter. What is known, however, is that by 1835 enough shares had been sold to fund the grading and construction of the roadbed. The financial Panic of 1837 severely hindered the further development of the railroad and postponed the town’s advancement via a direct rail connection to the mainline.
By the late 1840s, the economy had stabilized enough to spur local interest in reviving the railroad. By 1851 the Strasburg Rail Road became incorporated and soon after began carrying passengers and freight to and from the now-Pennsylvania Railroad junction in Paradise, Pennsylvania, thus fulfilling the dream that started twenty years before.
The Strasburg Rail Road offered something unique to the visitor. It offers fully restored steam locomotives in a world where steam motive power had been replaced with diesel/electric. It offers beautifully restored wooden railcars in a world where the wooden railcar was obsolete for commercial purposes. And it offers a 45-minute, fully narrated ride through picturesque Amish Country farmland during a time when tourists could not get enough of anything “Amish.”
From its first steam locomotive purchase in 1960 to today, Strasburg’s reputation for steam restoration, repair, and refurbishment is unequaled. The shops, staff, and roster of serviceable steam locomotives are unparalleled.
Coupled with that is the car shop where 100-year-old wooden coaches are fully restored to their original beauty. Strasburg Rail Road continues to be one of the few tourist railroads dedicated to running late 19th- and early 20th-century wooden coaches for its passenger service.
Over a half-century later, the Strasburg Rail Road remains dedicated to steam; it still ranks as one of the region’s most frequented attractions and is the most visited tourist railroad in the continental United States with annual ridership averaging 300,000 passengers.
To qualify for the find, please answer the following questions and send me the answers through the messaging system.
At the posted coords, you're looking at a baggage express train car. At the very left side under the word baggage, what is the 3rd digit listed in yellow?
--update 4/29/25-- If the train car isn't there with the number on it, please skip this question.
Next, take the short stroll to the Strasburg Rail Road Historical Marker. On the sign, what year did local railroad enthusiasts save the rail road from abandonment?
Finally, at the final waypoint, or whatever order you may be doing this in. Please take a photo of EITHER you with the 5 in the background that's on the lighpole with the tracks in the background, OR a personal object for proof of visitation. Please attach this to your log as you post.
After that is all said and done, feel free to log the virtual, but please send me the answers through messaging on the app, or by email, and I will confirm it if you have it right. If any questions are wrong, I'll send a message out, explaining which one is wrong.
AND AGAIN, HAPPY CACHING!!
Virtual Rewards 4.0 - 2024-2025
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between January 17, 2024 and January 17, 2025. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 4.0 on the Geocaching Blog.