Greenville Pa Railroad Shop

Andrew Carnegie established the Pittsburgh, Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad Company in 1897 to carry iron ore from Conneaut, Ohio, on Lake Erie to Carnegie Steel Company plants in and around Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Forming a link between his plants and the Great Lakes ore boats arriving in Conneaut from Minnesota's Missabe Iron Range, it was part of his plan to form a complete, vertically integrated steel company. The core of the PB&LE was formed by two small lines Carnegie absorbed: the Pittsburgh, Shenango & Lake Erie Railroad, and the Butler & Pittsburgh Railroad. The company was renamed the Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad in 1900. Carnegie Steel had an exclusive 999 year lease to the B&LE. This lease was acquired by United States Steel when that company acquired Carnegie Steel in 1901. The Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad became part of Transtar, Inc., in 1988, and subsequently a part of Great Lakes Transportation, LLC, in 2001. Since 2004, the Bessemer & Lake Erie has been operated as a unit of the Canadian National Railway. Iron ore remains the route's major freight commodity, although coal has always been a convenient backhaul to Conneaut.

The Pittsburgh, Shenango & Lake Erie Railroad began construction of the Greenville, Pennsylvania, shops in 1893, but the largest portion of the complex was added in several stages by successor Bessemer & Lake Erie. The last major structure to be added was the Diesel Shop in 1951. Much of the steam-era facilities gradually fell into disuse after the road completely dieselized, but portions continued to house various support functions. The complex was redundant to Canadian National, and it has been largely abandoned in place since shortly after the merger. The turntable still sees service turning diesel locomotives when needed.