Historical program will focus on former Turtle Creek Valley Railroad line

The Export Historical Society will host a free program March 24 on the history of the Turtle Creek Valley Railroad.

Younger residents will recognize it — or at least the section running through Export — as the Westmoreland Heritage Trail, but originally the line ran west to Saunders Station in Monroeville, and east to the Saltsburg area.

Established as the Turtle Creek Valley Railroad, the line also ran southeast to Greensburg and northeast to Saltsburg, and even operated a passenger service from 1894 to the mid-1930s. However, a flood in the mid-1920s destroyed a large portion of the line in the Saltsburg and Slickville areas.

“It started by where the Westinghouse plant was, in Trafford,” said Wayne Norris, president of Dura-Bond Industries in Export, who spoke with TribLive when the line marked its 125th anniversary in 2015. “It went through Murrysville’s Newlonsburg Station, Export and other small-town stations, and it connected with the Conemaugh branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad.”

The line was eventually taken over by Conrail, which stopped using it in the 1980s following deregulation of the U.S. rail industry.

The program will touch on the line’s history, its eventual conversion into a short-line railroad purchased by Export-based Dura-Bond Industries and its modern use as a community trail. It will also include a movie that depicts riding the train from Trafford to Export, shot in 1991.

It will be at 2 p.m. March 24 at 5880 Washington Ave. in Export. Train memorabilia will be on display.

For more, call 724-327-7308 or email kmlitz172@gmail.com.