Rt. 6 Landmarks Tell PA’s Transportation History

From memorial monuments in community parks to sites of extraordinary events in history, the “Lasting Landmarks” across PA Route 6 spin fascinating tales of Pennsylvania’s people, places, battles, and industry. And Northern Pennsylvania’s pivotal role in the American Revolution and later the Industrial Revolution has resulted in some incredible examples of transportation history across the PA Route 6 Heritage Region.

Whether by bridge, waterway, highway, or rail, these landmarks transport you back in time to when life may have been slower but no less exciting!

6 Incredible Landmarks of Transportation History — Along PA Route 6!

1. U.S. Brig Niagara & Erie Maritime Museum — Visit the Erie Maritime Museum, home port of the U.S. Brig Niagara, a reconstruction of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry’s relief flagship during the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. After touring the square-rigged two-masted warship, explore more of the region’s maritime history inside the museum, housed in a neat old PENELEC generator station.

2. Longhouse National Scenic Byway — Take this winding two-lane through the Allegheny National Forest, along the valleys, plateaus, rivers, and creeks once used as natural routes of transportation for early Paleo-Indian migrants, the Seneca Nation of the Iroquois Confederacy, Euroamerican explorers, and pioneers of the Oil Boom and Industrial Revolution!

3. Pine Creek Rail Trail — Experience the natural wonder of the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon from the base of the gorge, where in the 1800s “log drives” clambered down Pine Creek before logging railroads moved in and villages flourished. Don’t leave Wellsboro without a ride on the Tioga Central Railroad, considered “Pennsylvania’s Most Scenic Excursion Railroad.”

4. Knapp’s Covered Bridge — Take the back roads of Bradford County to Knapp’s Covered Bridge, an 1853 Burr arch-truss covered bridge listed on the National Register of Historic Places and recognized as the tallest covered bridge in Pennsylvania and last remaining in the county.

5. Tunkhannock Viaduct — Stand in awe at the base of the largest poured concrete bridge in the world, the Tunkhannock Viaduct, an incredible 2,375-foot long railroad bridge in the Endless Mountains lauded as “one of the true wonders of the world” upon its construction in 1915.

6. Silsby Steam Fire Engine & Honesdale Fire Museum — Head to the friendly Heritage Community of Honesdale to visit the Honesdale Fire Museum located inside the community’s Protection Engine Company No. 3 Station and touting a collection of historic fire protection equipment and artifacts centering around the museum’s prize piece, the fully operable 3rd Size 1874 Silsby Steamer.

More Historical Transportation Landmarks to See on 6:

• Presque Isle Lighthouse in Erie
• Sherman (a.k.a. Harrington) Covered Bridge in Albion
• The Climax Locomotive at the Corry Area Historical Society & Museum
• PennDOT Roadside Sculpture Garden in Meadville
• PA Lumber Museum’s Shay Locomotive near Galeton
• Sheffield Railroad Depot in Sheffield
• Kinzua Sky Walk in Kane
• D&H Canal Park at Lock 31 in Hawley
• Stourbridge Lion Replica at the Wayne County Historical Society

Visit our Tourism Partners for more help planning your trip!

Photo Credit: Knapps Covered Bridge (blind squirrel snapography) under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 / Brig Niagara (Christopher Lane Photography) under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 / Longhouse Scenic Byway (Dougtone) under CC BY-SA 2.0 /Tioga Central Fall Run (dfbphotos), Bridge over Pine Creek (woodleywonderworks) under CC BY 2.0 / Silsby Steamer (Wayne County Historical Society)