Proud of Our Past...

Looking Forward to Our Future

The Borough of Pitcairn is named for Robert Pitcairn, a former superintendent of the Pittsburgh division of the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1880, Pitcairn ordered construction of a rail yard along Turtle Creek near Pittsburgh that would become the largest railyard in the world. He was instrumental in locating switching yards, an engine roundhouse and car repair shops in the yard. With the expansion of the railyards, several plans of lots were laid out to accommodate railroad workers. As the village grew and with the residents’ desire to form their own community, in 1894 the Borough of Pitcairn was born. 

During World War II, more than 200 trains steamed through the huge Pitcairn railyards each day, carrying troops, supplies and material critical to the war effort. In 1996 the 250-acre site formerly occupied by the Pitcairn railyards was formally dedicated as the Conrail Pittsburgh Intermodal Facility. The Pitcairn site now handles more than 100 trains daily. At one time, the largest rail facility in the world, it is now Norfolk Southern's hub for intermodal transit in Western Pennsylvania.