About This Collection
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission was created in 1937 by the Pennsylvania State Legislature, Act No. 211, with the authority to construct, finance, operate, and maintain a toll highway. The Commission consists of five members, four of whom are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate for four-year terms. The fifth member of the Board is the Secretary of Transportation. The powers and duties of the Commission are executed through an executive director and various bureaus. The Pennsylvania Turnpike officially opened on October 1, 1940. A detailed history of the Turnpike Commission is available. The collection contains original drawings executed in the field relating to rights-of-way and grading of the Original Section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and its subsequent extensions. The majority are rendered in pencil or pen on sheets of engineering graph paper, and measure on average 32" x 38 1/4". Headings for either the Department of Transportation or the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission are printed on the tops of the various pages. Most drawings are grouped in sets, with each set pertaining to a specific location along the Turnpike's route. Data varies from sheet to sheet, and may include: final book number, county, district number, contract number, section number, route number, drawing number, and general descriptive information. Drawings are primarily cross sections with some construction plan and profile drawings. Typical subjects include: grading sections, channel changes, borrow pits, bridges, culverts, ramps, overpasses, road relocations, viaducts, interchanges, tunnels, tunnel approaches, toll plazas, service stations, and maintenance buildings. Microfilm rolls contain Bridge Unit drawings, construction drawings for various sections, tunnels, and affiliated turnpike structures.
