Monongahela Incline

Monongahela Incline
the sign on the terminal showing Monongahela Incline 1870
The lower terminal and a car descending
Lower station of the Monongahela Incline
Overview
OwnerPittsburgh Regional Transit
LocalePittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Termini
  • West Carson Street
  • Grandview Avenue
Stations2
Service
TypeFunicular
History
OpenedMay 28, 1870 (1870-05-28)
Technical
Line length635 feet (194 m)
Track gauge5 ft (1,524 mm)
Electrification1935
Operating speed6 mph (9.7 km/h)
Monongahela Incline
Monongahela Incline is located in Pittsburgh
Monongahela Incline
Monongahela Incline is located in Pennsylvania
Monongahela Incline
Monongahela Incline is located in the United States
Monongahela Incline
LocationGrandview Avenue at Wyoming Avenue,
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Coordinates40°25′55″N 80°0′20″W / 40.43194°N 80.00556°W / 40.43194; -80.00556
Area1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built1869
ArchitectJohn Endres and Caroline Endres
Architectural styleLate 19th and 20th Century Revivals, Second Renaissance Revival
NRHP reference No.74001742[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPJune 25, 1974
Designated CPHSMarch 15, 1974[2]
Designated PHLF1970[3]

The Monongahela Incline is a funicular on the South Side in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, near the Smithfield Street Bridge. Designed and built by Prussian-born engineer John Endres in 1870, it is the oldest continuously operating funicular in the U.S.

It is one of two surviving inclines in Pittsburgh (the other is the nearby Duquesne Incline) from the original 17 passenger-carrying inclines built there starting in the late 19th century. Its lower station is across the street from what is now the Station Square shopping complex. It is easily accessible from the light rail system at the Station Square station.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. In 1977 both inclines were designated as Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmarks by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).[4]

  1. ^ "National Register Information System – (#74001742)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ "Local Historic Designations". Pittsburgh: Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  3. ^ "Historic Landmark Plaques 1968-2009" (PDF). Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation. 2010. Retrieved August 5, 2011.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference landmarks was invoked but never defined (see the help page).