7. Opinions of the railroad varied
Passengers who traversed the mountains via the railroad offered a widely varied collection of opinions over the journey. Philip Nicklin, a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania, made the journey from Johnstown to Hollidaysburg in 1835. He found the ascent exhilarating. The trip down he described as “much more fearful”. Other passengers echoed his thoughts, with the descent into Hollidaysburg described in terms reflecting the steeper and longer grades found on that side of the portage. Still, he departed Johnstown at 6 AM and arrived in Hollidaysburg shortly after noon, a six-hour trip which took about three days by road.
Charles Dickens made the journey, traveling in the opposite direction, in 1842. He too mentioned the dangers sensed by what he referred to as the “giddy precipice”. He went away impressed with the engineering and the efficient manner through which the system operated. Dickens was one of the last passengers to endure the necessity of debarking from the canal boats, with all his baggage and personal belongings. On the other side of the portage, he embarked on another canal boat. He remarked upon the necessary inconvenience. A method of hauling the boats from the water and over the mountain soon appeared, changing the system and further speeding travelers along their way, thanks to Roebling’s wire rope.