he East Broad Top Railroad & Coal Company was chartered as early as 1856, but financial constraints and the Civil War prevented the railroad's construction by its original charterers. A new group of investors began to acquire right-of-way in 1867 and the road was laid down as a 3 ft narrow gauge line between 1872 and 1874. Service began from Mount Union, Pennsylvania, south to Orbisonia in August, 1873, and on to Robertsdale in November of 1874. The line later was extended to Woodvale and Alvan, with several short branches. At its peak, the EBT operated over 60 miles of track, including 33 miles of 36" mainline. The primary purpose of the shortline was to haul semi-bituminous coal from the mines on the east side of the remote Broad Top Mountain plateau.

In its first few decades, the railroad hauled most of the coal to Rockhill to be coked and used in iron production in the furnaces of the Rockhill Iron & Coal Company, its sister company. After the turn of the century, the line transitioned to haul most of the coal north to Mount Union to be processed and transferred to the standard-gauge Pennsylvania Railroad. The railroad also carried large amounts of rock, lumber, and passengers, along with some agricultural goods, concrete, road tar, and general freight. EBT became known for frequently re-trucking standard gauge rolling stock with narrow-gauge wheel sets, allowing for shipment over the shortline without re-loading freight at the interchange. The carrier offered passenger service as well, especially for moving coal minors to and from the online mines during production seasons. During the 1930s, the shortline also operated a regional bus service.

The tide changed for the "Old Easty" after World War II. Coal demand plummeted in the early 1950s and not enough other freight could be harnessed to save the common carrier. The railroad closed as a coal hauler April 14, 1956; with the coal-mining company, the shortline was sold for scrap to the Kovalchick Salvage Corporation. Nick Kovalchick, president of the company decided to let the property lay dormant for several years. As such, when the twin boroughs of Rockhill and Orbisonia celebrated their bicentennial, the railroad was revived as a tourist carrier for the occasion. This proved so popular that the line was reborn as a dedicated heritage hauler in 1961, the East Broad Top Railroad. For decades, summer operating seasons featured 10-mile 1-hour round trips behind one of several surviving Baldwin Mikado-type steamers — the largest and last power purchased by the former coal-hauling shortline. The tourist operation was overseen by Kovalchick from 1956 to 1977 and then by Nick's son Joe and his wife Judy after 1977 until 2009. For a few years the operation continued under a lease to a non-profit foundation, but that arrangement expired in 2012. For the next eight years, the dormant railroad's facilities were maintained by a skeleton staff and volunteers with the Friends of the East Broad Top organization. The nearby Rockhill Trolley Museum continued operations along its portion of former EBT branchline.

The railfan community rejoiced in 2020 when it was announced that the new EBT Foundation had been formed by several railroad industry leaders and EBT preservationists to once again save the road from dormancy and an uncertain future. The sale included approximately 27 miles of line, the yard complex in Rockhill, and all associated rolling stock and equipment. All six narrow-gauge steamers were thoroughly evaluated to determine their condition and which were the best candidates for return to operation. The East Broad Top reopened for limited operations in 2021 and officially reopened for its first full season in May 2022. Diesel power is being used while the first steamers are rebuilt and more mainline is being recused from overgrowth and neglect. The original 5-miles of line used for the tourist years — from Rockhill station out to Colgate Grove — has been rebuilt and upgraded.