{"nrhp_refnum":"76001616","name":"Mauch Chunk and Summit Hill Switchback Railroad","other_names":["Gravity Railroad"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"Between Ludlow St. in Summit Hill and F.A.P. 209 in Jim Thorpe","address_restricted":false,"city":"Jim Thorpe","county":"Carbon County","state":"PA","lat":40.85116339900006,"lon":-75.79171296305631,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-06-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A gravity railroad and plane system linking Summit Hill and Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe) in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, built to carry anthracite coal to the Lehigh River and Lehigh Canal. The line was constructed in 1827 under the direction of Josiah White for the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company.","why_significant":"The nomination describes the line as the first railroad in the country built to move coal and one of the first lines of major significance in Pennsylvania. Its development is argued to have been of major importance to the economic growth of the region. The 1844-45 backtrack and inclined planes are noted as the means that allowed continuous circuit operation.","narrative":"Built as a gravity railroad between Summit Hill and Mauch Chunk, the line carried anthracite coal eight and a half miles downhill, with loaded cars descending by gravity and empties returned by mules. Construction began on January 1, 1827, and the line was finished by May of that year under Josiah White, a partner in the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. The railroad is regarded as the first in the country constructed for moving coal. A backtrack with inclined planes over Mt. Jefferson and Mt. Pisgah, built in 1844-45, allowed loaded and empty cars to circulate continuously. Its economic role in the region's coal trade was considerable. Much of the right-of-way survives, along with features such as the Mt. Pisgah plane house remnants, a concrete reservoir, and a five-mile overpass known locally as the five-mile tree.","period_of_significance":"1827-1844","architect_builder":"Josiah White (Lehigh Coal & Navigation Co.)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Ties, rails and cars have been sold for scrap, but much of the right-of-way remains intact, including the downtrack and features at the top of Mt. Pisgah.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:30.127115-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/76001616.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001616/5a0bcf1d3e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001616/5a0bcf1d3e-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":null,"credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mauch_Chunk_and_Summit_Hill_Switchback_Railroad_1870.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Unknown author</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mauch_Chunk_and_Summit_Hill_Switchback_Railroad_1870.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71995978","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauch_Chunk_Switchback_Railway","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2589523"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/carbon-county/mauch-chunk-and-summit-hill-switchback-railroad-76001616/"}