On December 18, 1854, a train rolled through a little settlement called Clinton Mills for the first time (from the historical pamphlet “The Montgomery Hotel” by Elsie Nierle, and “Around Montgomery” by Joan Wheal-Blank). A farmer named Robert Montgomery owned property that surrounded the new railroad line, and he realized that having a train station in Clinton Mills could be beneficial to the area. He gifted a portion of his land to the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad near the current location of the Montgomery post office. A station was built, and it was called Montgomery Station. In 1860, Clinton Mills was renamed Montgomery Station, which became a borough in 1887, and “Station” was dropped from the town’s name in 1894 (Wheal-Blank).

Robert Montgomery built a brick hotel across from the train station sometime around the early 1860s (the current site of the Uni-Mart). Workmen stayed there while the railroad bridge was built across the Susquehanna River (Nierle).

A second set of train tracks was added when the Catawissa Railroad built a rail line just south of the Philadelphia and Erie line.

The railroads were so important to the area that Thomas E. Grady, one of the owners of the Montgomery Mirror, started “Railroad Topics”, a monthly publication. According to the 1892 book “The History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania” edited by John F. Meginness, “Railroad Topics is devoted to ‘railroads and railroading,’ and the first number appeared in April, 1891. It is the only journal published in central Pennsylvania and has been well received.”

By 1892, the Catawissa Railroad was the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad. They had their own train station that sat across from what is now the Station House Restaurant.

Eventually, the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad became the Pennsylvania Railroad.

With two active railroads, Montgomery became a thriving town. By the early 1900s the town had hotels (including one with a fine restaurant), two banks, a newspaper, a large school building on East Houston Avenue, a variety of churches, an Opera House, and many stores and businesses. Numerous factories were built along the railroad tracks.

While many local passenger trains came to and from Montgomery, there were also trains that passed through town without stopping. In September of 1901, President William McKinley’s funeral train traveled through Montgomery. Businesses closed for an hour and residents paid their respects and gathered along the tracks when the train came through (Wheal-Blank).

Montgomery was just one of many little towns in the area that had passenger train service. They were so instrumental in keeping local communities connected that when The Montgomery Opera House would hold dances, they would often note on the invitations that there was late night train service so that members of other communities knew that transportation would be available. In those days, a ten-mile horse and buggy trip could take up to two hours.

As the years went by, there were so many trains coming and going that the Montgomery Volunteer Fire Company became concerned about being able to provide adequate service to everyone in the community. Since the fire house was north of the railroad tracks, they built an additional garage on Second Street in 1930 with a separate truck and equipment so they could get to fires without having to wait for both of the train tracks to clear (Wheal-Blank).

While the passenger trains were very popular for decades and saw countless people come and go, arguably the most famous people to make use of Montgomery’s railroads were King George VI and Queen Elizabeth of England. In the early morning hours of June 7,1939, after a Royal Tour of Canada, they passed through Montgomery on their way to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The event was the feature story of the Montgomery Mirror that week.

Passenger trains continued to be in demand all over America through World War II. But as postwar prosperity flourished and more American households were able to afford a second car, the demand for passenger trains began to decline in the 1950s.

When the last passenger train ran in Montgomery, it was a special event. Kate Bashista grew up in Montgomery and was a member of local scout troop. When it was announced that the last train ride from Montgomery would occur, her Troop leaders, Elizabeth “Liz” Steward and June Taylor, arranged for the girls to be on it. Bashista recalls that two other troop leaders, Leona Dewalt and a Mrs. Follmer were also there. She couldn’t recall the exact year but she said that it was in the late 1960s when they boarded the train from the station near the post office. Bashista said that she was excited for her first train ride and got a window seat. It was a fun experience, but she remembers getting scared when the train crossed a bridge. They rode to Williamsport and back.

The Pennsylvania Railroad Station was torn down in the late 1960s, more than a century after it was built (from Around Montgomery Borough, 1940-1990 by Joan Wheal-Blank).

After passenger service ended, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad station across from the Station House restaurant was abandoned. When the Flood of 1972 hit, the building was damaged and the decision was made to demolish it.

There was one remaining relic left in place for a time, the Pennsylvania Railroad overpass on South Main Street. It was taken down in 1985 (Wheal-Blank). The supports still remain, reminding residents of the glory days of the railroads in Montgomery.

The Montgomery sign from one of the stations was salvaged. It was donated to the Montgomery Area Public Library and is on permanent display.