MOUNT UNION — It’s probably safe to say that some of us dread our daily commutes to work during the work week.

Though we all probably have our horror stories from these travels to and from the workplace, they probably don’t compare to the treacherous journeys of those working on the craggy mountainside above nearby Mount Union in Huntingdon County.

Imagine walking three miles from home just to climb up a mountain to begin a back-breaking 12-hour work day of busting rocks with a sledgehammer and loading the pieces onto railroad cars.

Hiking the short but arduous Thousand Steps Trail, part of the Standing Stone Trail, certainly helps visitors understand the six-day weekly routines of quarry workers in central Pennsylvania. Nearly a century after they were built, the Thousand Steps honor those workers who helped to make Mount Union the “Silica Brick Capital of the World.”

“It was an industrial work zone — a quarry operation, started in 1900,” explained George Conrad III, of Huntingdon and president of the Standing Stone Trail Club which maintains the Thousand Steps Trail.

“The quarry was dug in the 1930s. Once the quarry was built, it became a major operation 24-7 during World War II,” Conrad added. “It laid dormant until the 1980s, when they were putting in the original Link Trail.”

In the 1990s, the former quarry was purchased by a group of concerned citizens, who donated the land to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Eventually, the Standing Stone Trail Club took over the maintenance of the trail and continues to do so today.

Conrad will be talking about this popular historical landmark during his presentation, “The Thousand Steps: Past, Present and Future,” at the Towpath Naturalist Society of Juniata and Mifflin County’s meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Fellowship Hall, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 120 N. Main St., Lewistown. Attendees should use the rear entrance.

“People see the steps for a lot of different reasons,” Conrad said. “You have your history buffs. You have people who take the challenge of climbing 800 feet and seeing some really nice views from the top.

“You also have a lot of people who go up there to take a mental break from life,” he added. “There are a lot of people that go there for a lot of different reasons.”

Conrad also believes the Thousand Steps’ close proximity to Route 22 also makes a favorite attraction for recreation and great views. “You don’t have to hike a couple of miles to go there,” he explained.

The trail is a strenuous 2.7 mile out-and-back hike that leads straight up Jacks Mountain to the site of the old quarry with breath-taking views of the valley below. Technically, there are more than 1,000 steps to the top — 1,037 steps to be precise.

The Standing Stone Trail stretches 84 miles, connecting the Tuscarora Trail in the South to the Mid State Trail in the North. In addition to being a stand-alone foot trail, the Standing Stone Trail is part of the Great Eastern Trail.

Harbison-Walker Refractories Co. arrived in Mount Union in 1900 after purchasing a pre-existing brick works built the year prior. The company soon expanded the plant to increase capacity for manufacturing silica fire brick, a heat resistant brick used for lining furnaces, kilns and other high temperature applications.

The raw material for silica brick was ganister, a rock composed of quartzite and clays bonded together by lime. The brick works at Mount Union were the first in the United States built exclusively to produce this type of brick.

Several factors enabled the business to thrive, including the rich deposits in the Ganister Stone Quarry at the top of Jacks Mountain provided a convenient source for raw materials as well as Mount Union’s railroad connections. By 1910, Harbison-Walker’s brick works employed over 600 people and produced between 150,000 to 180,000 bricks daily.

To reach the ganister deposits, narrow-gauge railroad tracks had to be laid from the brick works, across the Juniata River and up to the mountaintop quarries. Cars were first taken from the brick works to the foot of the first of several inclines by small locomotives called “dinkies.” Loaded cars then pulled empties to the top where “dinkies” hauled them to the quarries to be loaded. Once full, the dinkies then returned the cars to the top of the incline to be lowered and taken back to the plant.

In March 1936, a severe flood devastated much of the region, destroying the “dinkey” railroad bridge, bringing operations to grind to a halt. The workers cut steps from the existing mountain rock up Jacks Mountain to create a walkway for the miners to reach the job site.

Quarrying operations continued until the late 1940’s when quarrying was relocated to a new location on the south side of the narrows. Ganister rock was then trucked to the plant.

At its peak, the Mount Union operation employed 2,000 people and produced 500,000 bricks a day, however by the 1980s, more stringent industry regulations coupled with the decline of the steel industry reduced the market for silica brick. Operations at Mount Union ceased in 1985, and the plant was dismantled soon afterward.

In 1996, organizations including the Central Pennsylvania Conservancy, Mount Union Historical Society, Keystone Trails and numerous others formed a committee with the goal to preserve the steps and surrounding lands.

Those who make a climb or descent on the steps often discover a sense of relief from their work commute woes, which are fairly inconsequential compared to what these workers faced on a daily basis.

The Towpath Naturalists always welcome new members and guests. Annual dues are $10.