on Mount Washington, c. 1905 The original
switchback trails that wound up the steep slopes of Mount Washington were barely passable to a team of horses pulling a loaded wagon. Immigrants, predominantly from Germany, settled Mount Washington by the early 19th century and worked in the plants adjacent to the Monongahela River. They became weary of climbing steep footpaths and steps to their homes, from the river valley, after work. They remembered the
standseilbahns (inclines) of their former country, and proposals were advanced to construct one or more of them along Coal Hill. The
Monongahela Incline was the first of these to be built in 1869–1870. The
Duquesne Incline opened to the public in May 1877, and it was one of four inclined planes climbing Mount Washington that carried passengers and freight to the residential area that had spread along the top of the bluff. As the hilltop communities were virtually inaccessible by any other means, many of Pittsburgh's inclines carried horses and wagons as well as foot passengers. All carried some light freight. A third incline, the
Castle Shannon Incline, which closed in 1964, also served the hilltop community on Mount Washington with a lower station at the corner of East Carson Street and Arlington Avenue, just east of the present
Station Square Transit Station. This incline was closed by its owner, the
Pittsburgh Railways Company, just prior to all of their streetcar and bus routes being taken over by the
Port Authority. The Monongahela and Duquesne Inclines allow access to Mount Washington's overlook of the downtown area of Pittsburgh. Tourists experience the view while riding two of only a few remaining inclines in the country. The inclines remain the best way for thousands of Pittsburghers on Mount Washington to get to their jobs, entertainment and shopping in downtown Pittsburgh and
Station Square. ==Pittsburgh sign==