What type of wagon inspired the dominant form of transportation on the improved trail through the Great Appalachian Valley from Pennsylvania to North Carolina?
Covered wagon The covered wagon was long the dominant form of transport in pre-industrial America. With roots in the heavy Conestoga wagon developed for the rough, undeveloped roads and paths of the colonial East, the covered wagon spread west with American migration. Heavily relied upon along such travel routes as the Great Wagon Road and the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails, it carried settlers seeking land, gold, and new futures ever further west.
Gallitzin Tunnel The Gallitzin Tunnels in Gallitzin, Pennsylvania, formed the Pennsylvania Railroad's passage through the Allegheny Mountains in western Pennsylvania. Their ownership has since passed to Penn Central Transportation Company, then to Conrail, and most recently to the Norfolk Southern Railway. Just east of the tunnels is the famous Horseshoe Curve. The tunnels are currently used by Norfolk Southern freight trains and Amtrak "Pennsylvanian" passenger trains.