A major railroad town, Altoona was founded by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849 as the site for a shop complex. Altoona was incorporated as a borough on February 6, 1854, and as a city under legislation approved on April 3, 1867, and February 8, 1868. The town grew rapidly in the late 19th century, its population approximately 2,000 in 1854, 10,000 in 1870'70, and 20,000 in 1880'80. The demand for locomotives during the American Civil WarCivil War stimulated much of this growth, and by the later years of the war Altoona was known as a valuable city for the North. It was considered by Confederate States of AmericaConfederate General Robert E. Lee as a target during the Army of Northern Virginia's mid-1863 entry into Pennsylvania, before being repelled at the Battle of Gettysburg. Also notable is the Union's War Governors' Conference, held at Altoona's Logan House. Notable is the Horseshoe Curve (Pennsylvania)Horseshoe Curve, a famous curved section of track owned by the Pennsylvania Railroad, now a tourismtourist attraction and National Historic Landmark. The Curve was used to raise trains to a sufficient altitude to cross the Allegheny Ridge to the west, beyond which was the steel town of Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaPittsburgh and the rest of the western United States. Because it was the industrial link to the western U.S., Horseshoe Curve was a primary target of eight NazismNazi saboteurs who infiltrated the United States in the early years of World War II (1942) by being dropped off by Kriegsmarine U-Boats. In the early 20th century, the Railroad's Altoona Works complex employed at its peak some 15,000 people and covered three miles (5 km) in length, 218 acres (880,000 m sq) of yards and 37 acres (150,000 m sq) of indoor workshop floor space in 122 buildings. The PRR built many of its own locomotives at the Works, some 7,873 in all, the last being constructed in 1946. Things began to decline steadily from that point, and most of the plant is now long gone. Altoona is also one of the dual seats of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown as the location of the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament (Altoona), which was made a cathedral and rechristened from St. John's Church in 1851. In 2000, Altoona became sister cities with St. Pölten, Austria. Today, Altoona serves as the corporate home to Sheetz, a rapidly growing convenience store chain in the United States. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altoona%2C_Pennsylvania