Brownsville railroad museum offers glimpse into history
Ernie Bradmon remembers the group of men that worked on the Monongahela Railway (MRY) out of Brownsville.
In fact, many of them serve as docent, photographer and historian of the Monongahela River, Railroad and Transportation Museum today, keeping the history of the railway alive for the community and visitors.
The Monongahela Railway was formed as a joint operation of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central-controlled Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad to move coal to the steel production centers in Pittsburg and northern Ohio.
After mergers and bankruptcies, only two owners remained by the 1980’s: CSX Transportation and Conrail. CSX eventually sold out to Conrail and the MRY disappeared as a corporate entity in 1993.
When Conrail bought MRY, the new company tossed everything in the dumpsters, but Bradmon and others had the foresight to salvage anything they found interesting.
Once volunteers obtained the old Northside Fire Station at 412 Church St., Brownsville in 2007, they replaced the ceiling, pulled up the floors and started collecting display cases.
Former state representative Bill DeWeese secured a $25,000 grant from the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) that helped move the project forward, and it officially became the Monongahela River, Railroad and Transportation Museum.
As a result of the men salvaging to protect past, the museum has a large map and paper collection, the old Remington typewriter used to print out barcodes, phones from the early 1900’s, lanterns and tools used by the car inspectors, track operators and more.
“There’s so much history here in Brownsville. The MRY was formed in 1903, and it was the seventh largest coal-hauling railroad in the nation. The railroad serviced something like 80 coal companies at the time,” Bradmon said.
The museum has continued to expand over the years.
In 2014, the Pittsburgh Garden Railway Society (PGRS) was looking for a new venue to set up their 24′ x 24′ G-gauge model railroad display, and it was the beginning of a cooperative relationship between PGRS and the museum. The model train layout, although with modifications, continues to be an attraction in the lower level of the museum.
In addition, a trip to Kansas City led to Bradmon bringing back artifacts from The Arabia, a boat that sank in the Missouri river but was originally built in Brownsville in 1850.
In 2019, the 70-year-old MRY caboose was moved to the museum for display and tours.
“As we expanded, we decided to call it the River, Railroad and Transportation Museum. We don’t have a whole lot for airplanes yet but a lot of information and artifacts from rivers and railroad,” Bradmon said.
They host school groups and historical groups, sharing the rich history of Brownsville, once a booming river town.
“It’s very educational. We’ve had school groups come in, and they’re on the floor, inches away from the artifacts and model trains. When the teacher said it was time to go, they wanted to stay longer,” Bradmon said.
The Monongahela River, Railroad and Transportation Museum is open 9 a.m. to noon every Wednesday, the first Saturday of every month and is available upon request.
There is no charge for tours or museum admission. Special requests can be arranged by calling 724-880-5960 during open hours or by email at MMRandTM@gmail.com.