HCH&HThree Springs, Huntingdon County Pennsylvania
Established in 1843
Three Springs and Saltillo, PA
Three Springs is a borough in Huntingdon County, PA. It was established in 1843. The narrow-gauge East Broad Top Railroad was constructed through the community in 1874. A small yard and station were located here, and a tank farm and scrap yard were serviced. The tracks have been out of service since 1956 but are still in place and owned by the railroad.
Three Springs is in southern Huntingdon County, sitting at the base of the south end of Jacks Mountain. Spring Creek and North Spring Branch flow through the borough, joining just southeast of the borough limits to form Three Springs Creek, an east-flowing tributary of Aughwick Creek and part of the Juniata River watershed. Sinking Run, another tributary of Three Springs Creek, flows through the eastern part of the borough.
Pennsylvania Route 994 runs through the center of the borough, leading northeast 6 miles (10 km) to Rockhill and west-northwest 20 miles (32 km) to Entriken. Pennsylvania Route 829 leads from the center of Three Springs 2 miles (3 km) northwest to Saltillo, and Pennsylvania Route 747 leads north-northeast 14 miles (23 km) to Mount Union at the Juniata River.
Saltillo was named after the Mexican War Battle of Saltillo (23 October 1840). It was a major tanning center during the late 19th andearly20th centuries. The Leas and McVitty Tannery was located here, known for quality hides. The main line of the East Broad Top Railroad (EBT) was built through Saltillo in 1874. The railroad served the tannery as well as a short-lived iron mine and an equally short-lived limestone quarry, both just southeast of town.
Saltillo was an important place on the EBT, acting as a base station for the long grade up to Broad Top Mountain. The EBT had a three-track yard, a station, a water tank and a turning wye located here. Just after the turn of the 20th century a large Ganister quarry was established above Saltillo on Jacks Mountain by Mount Union Refractories (later United States Refractories and North American Refractories) to supply their plant in Mount Union, Pennsylvania. In 1942 a spur was built from the EBT yard in Saltillo, which climbed the mountain to a tipple below the quarry. The branch was the steepest track on the EBT and remained in service until the line closed in 1956. The quarry continued to operate into the 1970s, served by trucks. The EBT tracks in Saltillo are still in place.
Three Springs, PA and Saltillo, PA
The pictures are of the Three Springs Saltillo Area
The pictures featured below are mostly from the Jackson Township Historical Preservation. They so graciously allowed the Huntingdon County History & Heritage Roundtable permission to use their collections.
