Destination: Pennsylvania Trolley Museum
A historic trolley station that was donated to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington was also used as a Wexford post office, and it most recently operated as a deli.
A historic trolley station in Wexford was donated to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington. The building was deconstructed in three parts and moved to the museum’s east campus next to its trolley display building.
A photo from the early 20th century shows the trolley station in Wexford when it was still in use. The building was recently donated to the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum.
WASHINGTON – The Wexford trolley station moved twice in the past 107 years. On Saturday, the 650-square-foot building – strapped onto a trailer – moved at a speed of 50 mph down Interstate 79 from its original home on Wexford Bayne Road to its new one at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum on North Main Street in Chartiers Township.
As for the first time, moving a building a half-mile down the street was not a speedy delivery in the early 20th century.
“The last time this moved down the road, it was going four mph being pulled by draft horses,” said Scott Becker, director of the museum. “It never went 50 before today.”
The station’s owners, heirs of the Brooker family of Wexford, donated the station to the museum for use as a walk-in exhibit. Museum organizers are hoping to raise more than $16,000 to install flooring and lighting before it opens to the public.
“A living history,” retired former state Sen. J. Barry Stout said as a crane prepared to lift the building onto its new foundation on the museum’s east campus.
Summarizing the events that morning, Stout suggested “horse-drawn to high-tech” as a newspaper headline. Construction equipment whirred and a drone whizzed overhead, capturing images of the event for a Washington County tourism promotion.
The historic station stopped serving passengers in 1931 when the Harmony line – serving Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler and New Castle – was abandoned. At that time, former station agent William P. Brooker purchased the building and moved it into the center of Wexford. It functioned as a post office until 1964, then served as an antique shop and most recently as a deli until it closed last year.
“Stations like this are very rare,” Becker said, adding the family preserved the building’s original character.
Jeff Pleta, who works for Historical Structure Relocation Service in Washington, has been preparing the station for its big move since November. The building was disassembled in three pieces, and the attic was transported separately. Rotted flooring had to be replaced.
“I’m a weekend warrior,” Pleta said. “I have a full-time job during the week.”
And he will continue to work for many more weekends until the station is fully restored. Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation donated mahogany waiting benches that will be placed inside the building.
A trolley car that used to run along the Harmony line through Wexford is being stored in a building behind the station’s new foundation.
“It’s kind of neat that we have the trolley, and now we have the station,” Becker said. “They’re kind of being reunited again. This is the only car that survived.”
The car was later turned into a diner after the Harmony line was shuttered for financial reasons.
“Car 115 featured ornate interior decoration, plush seating and a lavatory, for the ultimate in regional intercity travel,” read a placard inside the museum. “But there were too few passengers to appreciate this luxury, and the company was economically compelled to abandon its electric operations in 1931.”
Funding to move the station was provided through grants from the Allegheny Foundation, Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency, First Niagara Bank Foundation and individual donations.
In addition to tours, the building will be used for educational talks, workshops and special programs.