Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
April 30, 1978A special preview run took place for a passenger train that would serve a recently authorized commuter rail line between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. This train was named the Chesapeake. It was one of three trains, each with four cars, leased by the Maryland Department of Transportation for Amtrak to operate on the... Continue Reading →
April 29, 1909 Aviation pioneer Pearl Laska Chamberlain was born to John W. and Lanie C. Bragg on Chestnut Mountain in Summers County, West Virginia. One of eight children, Chamberlain started out life as Lelia Pearl Bragg. At the age of 17, Chamberlain became a school teacher; she remained in this profession to one extent... Continue Reading →
April 28, 1980 In the Canadian province of Quebec, Georges-Vanier station in southwest Montreal’s Little Burgundy neighborhood first went into service. This station was one of three built on the Orange Line of the Montreal Metro to be opened on the same day. Georges-Vanier station was named after a boulevard in that part of Montreal.... Continue Reading →
On October 25, 2017, a dedication ceremony was held for a memorial commemorating West Virginia state highway employees who have lost their lives in work zone collisions. The creation of this memorial was spearheaded by the West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH), the largest agency of the West Virginia Department of Transportation (WVDOT). The WVDOH... Continue Reading →
April 24, 1951 In Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County, a cantilever bridge crossing the Monongahela River was officially opened at noon. The bridge serves as a connection between the city of McKeesport and borough of Dravosburg. (Both McKeesport and Dravosburg are part of the Greater Pittsburgh area; the Steel City is not only the largest city in... Continue Reading →
April 23, 2017 Aubin Grove railway station in the vicinity of the state of Western Australia’s capital city of Perth made its official debut. This station -- located within the median of the Kwinana Freeway -- serves the Perth suburbs of Atwell, Aubin Grove, Hammond Park, and Success. Aubin Grove railway station is part of... Continue Reading →
April 22, 1833 The Erie and Kalamazoo Railroad (E&KRR) was chartered in the then-Territory of Michigan, which became a state in 1837. This railroad ultimately ran from what was at that time Port Lawrence, Michigan (now Toledo, Ohio) near Lake Erie to the village of Adrian, Michigan, on the River Raisin to the northwest. E&KRR was... Continue Reading →
April 21, 1906 The coastal passenger steamship SS Governor Cobb was launched at Roach’s Shipyard in the city of Chester, Pennsylvania. This vessel was the first ship built in the United States to be powered by steam turbines. That turbine technology was provided for the Governor Cobb by the New Jersey-based marine engineering firm W. &... Continue Reading →
April 18, 1905 A passenger train crossed a five-span cantilever truss bridge built to carry train traffic across the Mississippi River between the community of Illmo (now part of Scott City) in Missouri and the village of Thebes, Illinois. This train was the first one to cross the Thebes Bridge, thereby (in the words of... Continue Reading →
April 17, 1871 A railway station in the town of Scone in the colony (and present-day state) of New South Wales (NSW) was opened. Scone railway station was constructed as part of the NSW-based Great Northern Railway, which is also known today as the Main North Line. The inaugural duties for this station were carried... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 