Pennsylvania Railroad Company. Non-railroad subsidiary companies.

In the course of its development, the Pennsylvania Railroad Company absorbed or created a large number of ancillary non-railroad enterprises.

Prior to the 1920s these enterprises were primarily adjuncts to the company's railroad operations. Ferry and steamboat companies were simple extensions of the company's railroad lines. Real estate companies held surplus land along the railroad for the purpose of encouraging commercial and industrial development. Other companies owned coal lands which provided sources of traffic. The Susquehanna Coal Company, which owned anthracite mines around Nanticoke, Pa., was operated directly by the PRR until 1913, when it was sold to avoid antitrust prosecution. The PRR also owned several bitumimnous coal properties, which were leased to independent operators. Starting in 1902, the PRR created a number of water companies along its lines to ensure adequate supplies for its steam locomotives.

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