Staking Out MG Tower on the East Slope

The second day of my trip to the East Broad Top Railroad in Pennsylvania was spent on the east slope of Norfolk Southern’s grade over the Allegheny Mountains.

Mid Grade tower, or MG for short, is located about halfway up the grade about two miles west of Horseshoe Curve.

It used to be an important place on this busy mainline and while still busy it has been negated by technology.

Sadly, the tower has fallen upon hard times and is scheduled to be demolished. Here are a few photographs from my visit.

Article and Photographs by Todd Dillon

NS to Raze MG Tower Near Altoona

MG Tower as seen on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend 2013 during an excursion pulled by Nickel Plate Road 765 trip heading back toward Horseshoe Curve then Altoona for a lunch stop. (Photograph by Edward Ribinskas)

A historic former Pennsylvania Railroad interlocking tower near Altoona, Pennsylvania is set to be razed.

Norfolk Southern is seeking bids to demolish MG Tower two miles west of Horseshoe Curve.

“We have put the demolition out to bid and are awaiting responses,” NS spokesman Jeff DeGraff told the Altoona Mirror.

He said the demolition is for safety reasons because the structure is deteriorating. How soon the tower will be razed will depend on cost estimates the railroad receives.

The tower was built during World War II when the Pittsburgh-Philadelphia mainline boasted four racks.

Joe DeFrancesco, executive director of the Railroaders Memorial Museum of Altoona, said MG was not a viable candidate for preservation because it is far from a public road.

Moving the structure would be difficult and expensive, he said.

“You preserve what you can preserve,” DeFrancesco said. “Some things are beyond reach.”