Trolley Tuesday 3/10/2022 - The Southern Railway's "Brighton Belle"

Over the last three years or so of this blog, we've never avoided mentioning the Pullman Company's effect on electric traction. After all, their proximity to some of the largest transit networks in the United States led a lot of companies to depend on them for top-quality suburban and interurban cars. However, while Pullman's own streetcars were legendary in their own right, we've never touched upon the more well-known side of George Pullman's grand sleeping car empire, that being their luxury train services. Well, fret no more dear riders, as despite a relative lack of Pullman luxury electric trains in the United States, it seems the idea took off across the pond in Britain. On today's Trolley Thursday, we're looking at how the Pullman Company flourished in England and its role in making one of the most famous electric luxury passenger trains... in the world.

Trolley Tuesday 10/19/21 - Chicago's Green Hornet Streetcar Disaster

There are some disasters born of trial and error, there are some of many factors that culminate in one fatal act, and then there are some that are just freak accidents where a streetcar found itself in the wrong place at the wrong time. Long considered to be one of the deadliest midwestern streetcar disasters, and certainly the most violent, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) "Green Hornet" streetcar collision of May 25, 1950 is best remembered for the absolute carnage that followed its fatal route and the trauma inflicted on Chicagoans, many of whom still pass through the intersection of 63rd and State Street today. On today's Trolley Tuesday, we look back on the "Green Hornet" disaster and the lessons it taught us.

Trolley Thursday 2/18/21 - The Pacific Electric (And East Bay Electric And Northwestern Pacific) Blimps

I've written about many anachronistic streetcars all over this blog in the past, that is streetcars that were in service for at least 40-50 years. We've had 1910s steel interurbans working well into the 80s on the South Shore, PCC cars working into the 80s in Cleveland, and even ex-San Diego PCC cars enjoying retirement in El Paso, Texas. Even on the Pacific Electric (PE), anachronistic streetcars working well-past their service life wasn't the exception, but the rule, with many receiving upgrades to keep them in service or downgraded to secondary services, as we covered in the wood and steel interurban car episodes. Today's rolling anachronism was born at the same time as the Twelves, but were much bigger, grander, and long-lived than even the people who saved them expected to be. With some of the oldest members now pushing 108 years old, let's return now to the thrilling days of yester-year as we take a flight aboard the big, the bad, and the beautiful Blimps on today's Trolley Thursday!

Trolley Thursday 2/11/21 - Pacific Electric's City and Center-Entrance Cars

The Pacific Electric Railway (or PE) did not develop the famous 600-750 Class "Hollywood Cars" overnight. In fact, it's something we'll be covering in greater detail next Tuesday. Prior to their most-famous streetcar type, PE (and by extension, their parent company Southern Pacific) spent years before 1923 trying to find the perfect standard "city" or "suburban" car to complement their successful standard range of wood and steel interurban cars. Outside of the Hollywoods, PE had four other classes of city cars that helped keep Angelinos moving around Los Angeles, Glendale, and Pasadena, and it's definitely worth talking about them on today's Trolley Tuesday, all about the search for the perfect city car!

Trolley Tuesday 7/28/20 - The Pullman Company's Streetcars

Even if you're not into railroads, the name "Pullman" is synonymous to luxury. Indeed, one of the many things George M. Pullman's company was well known for was building luxurious sleeping cars that made going across the country, or across a state, a luxurious first-class affair. However, through all of the fancy trains and the various worker strikes and the admittedly-creepy paternal industrial culture Pullman championed, one of the more subtle and long-lasting products his company made were streetcars and elevated railway coaches. Electric railway companies around the country, especially around the Chicago area, were loyal buyers of Pullman products, and today's Trolley Tuesday will cover just a taste to close out this month!