THERE WAS SOMETHING SO FREE, SO LIBERATING, as I watched my Pre-K kid late last summer sprinting across a football field-sized patch of grass in Paradise (Pennsylvania), as he ran alongside a locomotive from the Strasburg Rail Road. He quickly ran out of steam, but his copycat chug-a-chug sound effects, his sense of wonder, and his pure infatuation with motion have helped him keep track of this memory of our visit to Lancaster County. My son’s four-year-old fantasies were grounded in a boyhood fascination with Thomas, the friendly and familiar blue-bodied steam locomotive, but the legacies of the state’s railroads go far beyond Thomas toys. Pennsylvania’s historic railroads created arteries of commerce, birthed towns along their countless routes, and transformed Pennsylvania into an industrial giant. The heritage of these railroads is celebrated today in historical rail car rides, fall foliage tours, and holiday excursions; these routes are also preserved in local museums decorated by diesels, steam engines, and trolleys. Railroading is also valued in contemporary society: today, Pennsylvania is the midway point for Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor , the busiest railroad in North America. All aboard for a ride around the state — let’s take a whistle-stop tour! Pennsylvania Trolley Museum Washington Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania Strasburg visitPA.com 37
Pennsylvania Happy Traveler Guide 2018: Page 37
