Juniata Shops

(Jim Logrando) - The growing business of the Pennsylvania Railroad and crowding at the original 1850 Altoona Machine Shops Complex led PRR officials in 1886 to begin developing plans for construction of additional shops for locomotive repair and building of new locomotives. The site selected was a large tract of land in the eastern section of Altoona known as Juniata.
The reason that an entirely new location was needed for locomotive repairs was the ever increasing size of locomotives used in road service. Prior to 1880, most American locomotives were relatively small machines, rarely over 30 tons. Individual parts could be moved with hand power, swing cranes, blocks, jacks, and human muscles. New power cranes with large clearances were now needed to clear a finished engine above its neighbor on the shop floor. Continued

Canon EOS 30D & EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS lens