The Railroad Era

The Railroad Era. Perry County Bicentennial. , The Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR) reached Newport in 1849 and connected with Pittsburgh by 1857. As with the 1829 Pennsylvania Canal, Newport area business and population increased. , By the late 1800s as many as seven passenger trains a day stopped in Newport. Twenty or more freights passed through the Borough on what was the nation's principle route west. , Until 1905 the PRR sliced through the town using 3rd Street as an artery. Occasionally, cinders from the coal burners started roof fires. Even with a town speed limit of 15 mph, horses were frightened, carriages wrecked and human life damaged or lost. , Between 1903 and 1905 hundreds of PRR contractors worked to relocate the tracks to a massive roadbed over the abandoned canal. An underpass was constructed to connect Market Street to the Juniata River Bridge. Therefore, accidents decreased as railroad efficiency increased. However, the town's view of and access to the river were greatly reduced. , In 1891, the Newport and Sherman's Valley Railroad (N&SVR), a narrow gauge track from western Perry County, opened with its terminus adjacent to the PRR station. Both were located on what is now a supermarket parking lot on Walnut Street. The N&SVR entered and exited Newport through Peach Alley. , The N&SVR ceased business in 1921 and the PRR halted Newport passenger service by the mid-1950s. In 2015 Norfolk Southern trains thundered through Newport carrying a significant portion of the nation's goods and raw materials. Amtrak, a remnant of PRR's prestigious passenger service, passed through Newport twice daily, never stopping.