Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Railroad transportation |
| Predecessor | Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal Railway |
| Founded | 1904 |
| Fate | Leased by Norfolk and Western Railway in 1964; lease transferred to Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway in 1990 |
| Headquarters | Pittsburgh , United States |
Area served | Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Ohio |
| Products | Rail freight transportation |
| Parent | Power REIT (as property owner) |
The Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway operated primarily within the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Wheeling, West Virginia regions. Originally established as the Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal Railway, it served as an extension of George J. Gould's Wabash Railroad network. However, it entered receivership in 1908 and was subsequently detached from the larger system. In 1931, a connection was created linking it to the Western Maryland Railway at Connellsville, Pennsylvania, integrating it into the Alphabet Route—a collaborative network facilitating transportation between the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. The Norfolk and Western Railway leased this line in 1964 during its acquisition of other segments of the Alphabet Route; later, in 1990, the lease transferred to the newly formed Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway spin-off just prior to Norfolk and Western’s merger into Norfolk Southern.
Significant infrastructure was developed under the original Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal Railway, including the downtown Pittsburgh Wabash Terminal—damaged by fires in 1946 and demolished in 1953—and the Wabash Bridge spanning the Monongahela River, which was dismantled in 1948. The Wabash Tunnel near Mount Washington was reopened in 2004 as a dedicated high occupancy vehicle corridor. As of May 2024, two piers from the former bridge still stand.
The railway featured branches extending to West End and West Mifflin, Pennsylvania (known as the Mifflin Branch), along with a minor industrial spur near Belle Vernon. By 1960, the P&WV managed 132 miles of mainline track over a total of 223 miles of rail, reporting freight revenue of 439 million net ton-miles.
Gould system: 1901 to 1908
At the turn of the twentieth century, industrialist George J. Gould sought to establish a transcontinental railroad network. By 1909, he had assembled a route from the Pacific to the Mississippi River through acquisitions such as the Western Pacific Railway, Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, and Missouri Pacific Railroad. East of St. Louis, Gould acquired control of the Wabash Railroad extending toward Toledo.
On February 1, 1901, Gould partnered with Joseph Ramsey Jr. to create the Pittsburgh-Toledo Syndicate aimed at extending this system into Pittsburgh. They acquired rights through the unbuilt Pittsburgh and Mansfield Railroad that allowed access into downtown Pittsburgh. By May of that year, ownership of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad was secured; this line ran southeast from Toledo to Zanesville, Ohio, and Wheeling, West Virginia.
The Pittsburgh extension was chartered under three separate companies: Cross Creek Railroad (Ohio), Pittsburgh, Toledo and Western Railroad (West Virginia), and Pittsburgh, Carnegie and Western Railroad (Pennsylvania). Construction commenced on June 14, 1901. These entities merged on May 7, 1904, forming the Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal Railway, consolidating syndicate holdings including W&LE. The inaugural train passed through the Wabash Tunnel on June 1; passenger operations into the new terminal began July 2 with connections servicing Toledo, Chicago, St. Louis, and Kansas City.
Gould’s plans also included routes from Zanesville southeastward to Belington, West Virginia (via Little Kanawha Syndicate), and from Belington eastward to Baltimore by acquiring West Virginia Central & Pittsburg Railway and Western Maryland Railroad through Fuller Syndicate purchases in 1902. Additionally, a high-speed electric interurban line—the Philadelphia and Western Railway—was proposed to connect Philadelphia westward to York but was never realized.
Facing stiff opposition from Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which obstructed Gould’s expansion efforts by removing Western Union telegraph poles on its property, Gould’s system encountered financial difficulties. The economic downturn during the Panic of 1907 further exacerbated challenges due to expensive construction projects on challenging terrain. Subsequently, Western Maryland entered receivership on March 5, 1908; shortly thereafter on May 29, Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal followed suit—effectively severing through service between Pittsburgh and both W&LE/Wabash systems.
Independence: 1908 to 1929
Following a period under receivership, the company was sold through foreclosure in August 1916 and subsequently reorganized in November as the Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railway (P&WV). It was considered for integration into a major rail network known as the "Fifth System," intended to complement the four leading railroads: Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Central Railroad, Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, and Erie Railroad. Nevertheless, a crucial link between the W&LE/P&WV and the Western Maryland remained incomplete due to the Little Kanawha Syndicate failing to bridge the gap.
The preexisting West Side Belt Railroad supported early expansion efforts by intersecting the P&WV near the Wabash Tunnel entrance beneath Mount Washington and extending southeastward to Clairton along the Monongahela River. After an initial refusal, the Interstate Commerce Commission authorized P&WV’s purchase of the West Side Belt in December 1928, strengthening its regional reach.
Pennsylvania Railroad influence: 1929 to 1964
In 1929, the Pennsylvania Railroad established the Pennroad Corporation as an investment and holding entity designed to circumvent ICC oversight. Pennroad secured a controlling interest of 72% in P&WV, representing a significant strategic investment.
On February 11, 1931, P&WV extended its line to Connellsville, Pennsylvania, where it connected with the Western Maryland at Pierce. This extension became part of the "Alphabet Route," which utilized the Nickel Plate Road instead of Wabash for routes to St. Louis and Chicago. Importantly, P&WV and Western Maryland never had a direct connection in Connellsville; instead, a segment of Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad track linked them.
The Nickel Plate leased the Wheeling and Lake Erie on December 1, 1949. In March 1950, Pennroad announced intentions to lease P&WV to Nickel Plate. By 1962, the Norfolk & Western Railway aimed to incorporate P&WV into its merger with Nickel Plate, completing acquisition on October 16, 1964, followed by leasing P&WV.
Meanwhile, Western Maryland was acquired by rival companies Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in 1967. After Western Maryland discontinued its Connellsville-Cumberland mainline in 1975, P&WV established a new connection with B&O near Connellsville (Sodom), abandoning former links to P&LE and WM. This move preserved a variant of the Alphabet Route within the Chessie System but rerouted traffic over B&O tracks east of Connellsville instead of using Western Maryland rails.
Norfolk and Western: 1964 to 1990
The Pittsburgh and West Virginia Railroad was created in 1967 as a real estate investment trust (REIT) tasked with owning property leased to Norfolk and Western (N&W). Currently a subsidiary of Power REIT, it is publicly traded on the NYSE under the ticker "PW". The leased assets encompass 112 miles of railroad lines spanning Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio, along with an additional 20 miles of branch lines. In 1964, these railroads were leased to Norfolk Southern Corporation (NSC), successor to N&W Railway Company, for a term of 99 years with an option for indefinite renewal.
Under this lease agreement, NSC is responsible for operating, maintaining, and managing the properties at its own cost while making capital improvements that become assets owned by Pittsburgh & West Virginia Railroad. These enhancements are recorded as liabilities owed by the company to NSC. The corporation’s exclusive business activity is holding these leased properties and collecting rental income. Upon termination of the lease, all assets would revert back to Pittsburgh & West Virginia Railroad with sufficient funds allocated to support one year of operations.
Wheeling and Lake Erie: 1990 to present
On May 17, 1990, Norfolk Southern divested the majority of the original Wheeling and Lake Erie (W&LE) assets, resulting in the creation of a new Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway. The lease for the P&WV was assumed by this newly formed W&LE, which broadened its operational scope by securing trackage rights on CSX Transportation routes spanning from Connellsville East to Hagerstown, Maryland. This strategic expansion significantly improved W&LE's regional network connectivity and increased its operational presence.