Lehigh Valley Railroad

Asa Packer was looking to solve a problem. How to transport anthracite coal quickly and efficiently through Pennsylvania.

In 1864, in the picturesque town of Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania (now Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania Carbon County.) Packer put his plan into place by creating the famed Lehigh Valley Railroad.

By 1869, Packer had connected the Leigh Valley Railroad to the New York State Finger Lakes Region. The same year a primary line to transport coal to Athens, Pennsylvania (Bradford County) was completed.

In 1876, the Lehigh Valley Railroad expanded once again. This time the Lehigh Valley Railroad obtained Ezra Cornell’s (founder of Cornell University) railroads which covered Geneva, New York , Ithaca, New York and Sayre.

Buffalo was added by the Lehigh Valley Railroad in 1882. The Packers didn’t stop there. The Lehigh Valley Railroad had its eyes set on Sayre. Early on, Lehigh Valley Railroad had a couple of small shops in Sayre. In 1904, the second largest locomotive building in the world was built in Sayre. The BIG SHOPS covered six acres or 283,140 square feet under one roof. The building was so immense, it took ten years to complete. The BIG SHOPS produced 277 locomotives along with freight cars and cabooses.

The Sayre Historical Society has one of the Lehigh Valley Railroad cabooses on display to the public. The Lehigh Valley Railroad also used the BIG SHOPS to make repairs. Unfortunately, the BIG SHOPS were demolished in 1988.

1896 arrived with the Lehigh Valley Railroad’s flagship passenger train, the Black Diamond Express. This magnificent locomotive was considered the fastest, most luxurious, and the world’s most handsome train.

The Lehigh Valley Railroad fell on hard times and was taken over by Conrail in 1976.

Today, Leigh Valley Railroad Passenger Station is home to the Sayre Historical Society Museum located 103 South Lehigh Ave. The Lehigh Valley Railroad Warehouse located 718 North Lehigh Avenue is a restaurant.