I believe this photo postcard of Chicago Surface Lines 5812 was taken at the 72nd and Cottage Grove loop. Don’s Rail Photos says, “5712 was built by Brill Car Co in 1912, #18322. It was rebuilt as one man/two man service in 1933 and retired on August 25, 1947.” This picture appears to date between 1914 and 1933.
Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, and here we have some tasty traction Valentines for your consideration. First, we have some recent finds of our own, followed by many generously shared from the collections of William Shapotkin. We finish this post with an important find from J. J. Sedelmaier.
-David Sadowski
Recent Finds
LVT 812 in front of the Easton car barn on a June 30, 1947 fantrip. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LVT 710 at Philadelphia, PA on August 19, 1945. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LVT 1000 is on an ERA fantrip, “at the east end of the Ham Street Bridge,” in Allentown on October 29, 1950. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LVT 1003 is at the Allentown car barn in September, 1940. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LVT 1004 in Allentown, October 1939. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LT 1006 at Allentown on January 23, 1943. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
LVT 803, in dead storage awaiting scrapping in Allentown, on November 8, 1939. (James Maloney, Jr. Photo)
A single-car CTA Skokie Swift train leaves Howard Street in June 1977.
An artist’s rendering of the high-level us subway the CTA envisioned for Washington Street between Canal and Michigan, 1961.
Indiana Railroad #1150 is southbound at Springport station on the New Castle line on January 1, 1941 in the waning days of that storied Hoosier interurban. (Eugene Van Dusen Photo)
SF Muni cable car 524 is at Powell and Market at 1 am on September 2, 1956.
SF Muni cable car 503 at Washington and Octavia on September 1, 1956.
Cable car track work at Powell and California on October 31, 1957.
Red Arrow Lines Brilliner #7 is running on the street, presumably on the Sharon Hill branch, on November 27, 1960.
On June 3, 1962 Red Arrow car 20 is turning onto a cobblestone street on the Sharon Hill line.
At first, you might think this lineup of NSL cars in dead storage at Highwood (headed up by 158) is post-abandonment, but apparently not. The slide not only has a 1/20/63 date stamped on it (last full day of operations), the slide was processed by Kodak in January 1963.
In this April 11, 1964 view, one of the former North Shore Line Electroliners has been rechristened as a Red Arrow Liberty Liner on the Norristown High Speed Line in Philadelphia’s suburbs. I would expect that the abandoned right-of-way at left is where the Strafford branch once was.
North Shore Line electric loco 456 heads up a short freight train on January 20, 1963– the last full day of operations prior to abandonment.
CTA 7108, already signed for its northbound trip on Route 36, is near 120th and Halsted in the 1950s.
CTA 4095 is eastbound at Lake and Ashland on June 24, 1961. In the ackground, you can see the old Lake Transfer station, where riders could change (up until February 1951) for Logan Square and Humboldt Park trains.
A CTA two-car Lake Street “L” train heads east in this 1960 photo by Al Holtz.
April 1963.
From the Collections of William Shapotkin
CTA trolley us 9377 is at Irving Park and Neenah. This bus turnaround is no longer in use by CTA, and has now become part of a driveway for a development.
At right, 2411-2412 are on the same fantrip mentioned in the revious photo. At left, a southbound Howard-Dan Ryan train passes the Diversey station on the Ravenswood “L”. William Shapotkin took this picture on December 13, 1998.
At right, CTA cars 2411-2412 are on an NRHS (National Railway Historical Society) fantrip. At left, a southbound Howard-Dan Ryan train blasts by the Armitage station on the Ravenswood “L”. William Shapotkin took this photo on December 13, 1998.
CTA 2177 heads up an Evanston Express train at Armitage on July 10, 1989.
CTA bus 8413 is southbound on Broadway at Lawrence in October 1973, running on Route 36. (Ronald J. Sullivan Photo)
CTA 3140, working a southbound trip on CTA Route 38 – Indiana, heads southbound on Wabash Avenue, crossing Roosevelt Road. Visible above the red car at right is the one-time Union Bus Deport. The view looks north.
CTA trolley bus 9537, working Route 12 – Roosevelt Road, departs its east end terminal at Roosevelt Road east of Wabash Avenue. the view looks north.
CSL 5925 heads southbound on Wabash Avenue and crosses Roosevelt Road. The Union Bus Depot is on the northeast corner. The view looks northeast.
CTA trolley bus 9453, working a westbound trip on Route 12 – Roosevelt Road, has just crossed Wabash Avenue. (The building on the northeast corner is the one-time Union Bus Depot.) The view looks northeast on May 27, 1967, taken from the CTA Roosevelt Road station.) Jeffrey L. Wien Photo, Wien-Criss Archive)
A northbound Lake-Englewood “A” train of 2000-series cars approaches the “L” station at 40th and Indiana in September 1993. (Myron Lane Photo)
A northbound CTA train approaches the Indiana “L” station on the south side of Chicago on June 28, 1992. The occasion was a Central Electric Railfans’ Association fantrip, celebrating a century of rapid transit. (Jim Arvites Photo)
CTA 2821, a wooden Met car running northbound on the Kenwood shuttle circa 1956-57. These were the last type of cars used for that service, which ended in 1957.
We are looking east off the CTA’s Indiana Avenue “L” station in the early 1950s. At left, a Kenwood train has just departed en route to 42nd Place. At right, two 200-series cars (used as equipment on the Kenwood line) are in storage on what once had been the northbound local track of the South Side “L”.
CTA gate car 268 at the Indiana Avenue station “pocket.”
CTA 268 is a Kenwood local, at the Indiana Avenue station.
A two-car train, including #227, is being stored for Kenwood service, on what had once been the northbound local track on the South Side “L”, in the early 1950s.
CTA 385 is at the Indiana Avenue station in July 1948,signed as a Wilson Avenue local via the elevated (instead of the State Street subway, which opened in 1943). The following year, the CTA introduced A/B “skip stop” service to North-South and the Kenwood and Stockyards branches became shuttles.
CTA car #273, working the Kenwood “L” shuttle, is seen at the 40th and Indiana Avenue station. The view looks northeast.
Once the Kenwood and Stockyards ranch lines became full-time shuttle operations, the CTA station at 40th and Indiana Avenue was reconfigured. Here is a Kenwood car in the “pocket.”
Looking west from the west end of the Indiana Avenue “L” station, 4000-series “L” cars are laying over on the Stockyards “L”. 4000s were used on this branch during the 1952 and 1956 political conventions held at the International Amphitheater. (Joseph N. Canfield Photo)
The Indiana Avenue station on the South Side “L” circa 1956. A northbound Englewood-Howard train departs the station, while a Stockyards shuttle train awaits departure time. The view looks east. (Joseph N. Canfield Photo)
Looking east (timetable south) into 63rd and Cottage Grove station on the Jackson Park “L” on May 12, 1996. (William Shapotkin Photo)
A Lake-Jackson Park train approaching 63rd and Cottage Grove on May 12, 1996. The train has crossed over to the northbound track and is arriving at the station. (William Shapotkin Photo)
A southbound Jackson Park train approaches 63rd and Cottage Grove on May 12, 1996. The train is about to cross over and arrive at the station. The view looks west (timetable north) from the north platform. (William Shapotkin Photo)
Chicago, IL. Looking westbound on O’Neil Street (now 23rd Place) from Halsted Street. Well into the 1900s, this was an important terminal/transfer point. Note cable slots– the West Chicago Street Railroad Company’s Halsted-Van Buren cable line terminated in the carbarn at left. This was also the south terminal of Chicago Union Traction’s Halsted line. CUT car #4171 (Pullman 1898) prepares for its northward journey. (Fred J. Borchert Photo)
Chicago, IL. Looking westbound on 23rd (O’Neil) Street from Halsted Street, once a busy street– once a busy streetcar/cable car terminal (with a carbarn). The rails (along with a crossover) are still intact and visible in this July 30, 2004 photo by William Shapotkin.
(William Shapotkin Photo)
Bus stop sign at the northwest corner of 23rd (O’Neil) Street and Halsted Street. The view looks northeast on July 30, 2004. (William Shapotkin Photo)
Chicago, IL. Looking eastbound on 3rd (O’Neil) Street towards Halsted Street, once a busy streetcar/cable car terminal. Both sets of rails (which head onto northbound Halsted) are still visible (as of July 30, 2004) lo these many years since the discontinuance of streetcar service. (William Shapotkin Photo)
Indiana Avenue station on the South Side “L”. Left– a northbound Kenwood train arrives, while at right, a westbound Howard train also arrives. The view looks east off the overhead transfer ridge in 1950. (Joseph N. Canfield Photo)
Another North Shore Line Poster
Following up on our previous post Anniversaries (January 24, 2019), here is an interesting find, courtesy of our friend J. J. Sedelmaier.
Looking north on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue at Ohio Street circa mid-late 1920s. BTW – the billboard on the right was originally produced in 1925 as a South Shore Line one-sheet poster. (J. J. Sedelmaier Collection)
The Trolley Dodger On the Air
We appeared on WGN radio in Chicago last November, discussing our book Building Chicago’s Subways on the Dave Plier Show. You can hear our 19-minute conversation here.
Order Our New Book Building Chicago’s Subways
There were three subway anniversaries in 2018 in Chicago:
60 years since the West Side Subway opened (June 22, 1958)
75 years since the State Street Subway opened (October 17, 1943)
80 years since subway construction started (December 17, 1938)
To commemorate these anniversaries, we have written a new book, Building Chicago’s Subways.
While the elevated Chicago Loop is justly famous as a symbol of the city, the fascinating history of its subways is less well known. The City of Chicago broke ground on what would become the “Initial System of Subways” during the Great Depression and finished 20 years later. This gigantic construction project, a part of the New Deal, would overcome many obstacles while tunneling through Chicago’s soft blue clay, under congested downtown streets, and even beneath the mighty Chicago River. Chicago’s first rapid transit subway opened in 1943 after decades of wrangling over routes, financing, and logistics. It grew to encompass the State Street, Dearborn-Milwaukee, and West Side Subways, with the latter modernizing the old Garfield Park “L” into the median of Chicago’s first expressway. Take a trip underground and see how Chicago’s “I Will” spirit overcame challenges and persevered to help with the successful building of the subways that move millions. Building Chicago’s subways was national news and a matter of considerable civic pride–making it a “Second City” no more!
Bibliographic information:
Title Building Chicago’s Subways
Images of America
Author David Sadowski
Edition illustrated
Publisher Arcadia Publishing (SC), 2018
ISBN 1467129380, 9781467129381
Length 128 pages
Chapter Titles:
01. The River Tunnels
02. The Freight Tunnels
03. Make No Little Plans
04. The State Street Subway
05. The Dearborn-Milwaukee Subway
06. Displaced
07. Death of an Interurban
08. The Last Street Railway
09. Subways and Superhighways
10. Subways Since 1960
Building Chicago’s Subways is in stock and now available for immediate shipment. Order your copy today! All copies purchased through The Trolley Dodger will be signed by the author.
The price of $23.99 includes shipping within the United States.
For Shipping to US Addresses:
For Shipping to Canada:
For Shipping Elsewhere:
Redone tile at the Monroe and Dearborn CTA Blue Line subway station, showing how an original sign was incorporated into a newer design, May 25, 2018. (David Sadowski Photo)
Help Support The Trolley Dodger
This is our 227th post, and we are gradually creating a body of work and an online resource for the benefit of all railfans, everywhere. To date, we have received over 488,000 page views, for which we are very grateful.
You can help us continue our original transit research by checking out the fine products in our Online Store.
As we have said before, “If you buy here, we will be here.”
We thank you for your support.
DONATIONS
In order to continue giving you the kinds of historic railroad images that you have come to expect from The Trolley Dodger, we need your help and support. It costs money to maintain this website, and to do the sort of historic research that is our specialty.
Your financial contributions help make this web site better, and are greatly appreciated.
The shot of Red Arrow Lines #7 is indeed on the Sharon Hill line, outbound to Sharon Hill on Springfield Rd. in Clifton Heights. The shot was apparently taken from the PRR overpass at the Clifton-Aldan station of the Media commuter line.
The following shot of #20 is outbound to Sharon Hill turning onto Springfield Rd., at a point barely visible in the prior shot of #7.
The Liberty Liner is, as suspected, at the location of the former junction with the Strafford line, the Liner being northbound to Norristown.
Keep up the good work. Your posts are always a joy to read.
Thanks!
These are some really priceless photos of the Indiana station!
Re the photo of CTA 4095 eastbound on Lake at Ashland, I assume this was an equipment move since there is no front destination sign and without trolley poles these cars could not operate west of Laramie. It’s hard to tell from the photo, but is it possible that this train just came off the Paulina Connector from West-Northwest service?
Isn’t it a shame the CTA didn’t save some baldies for the Heritage Fleet? Two bowling alley cars and two cross-seat cars, where the center doors were replaced with windows and infill panels.
I was curious about the two San Francisco cable car pictures from September 1956 and did a little research. September 1, 1956 was the last full day for the Washington-Jackson cable line. The route was from Market via Powell, Jackson, to Steiner; and return via Washington, Powell, to Market.
I know this might be nitpicking, but the picture of LVT 710 was taken at the Philadelphia and Western terminal in Upper Darby Township, Delaware County, PA, just outside the Philadelphia City Limits. The City of Philadelphia may have wished it were Philadelphia, but political boundaries dictated things It does mean that us folks in Philly have to occasionlly take ownership for bad things, including the 2015 wreck of Amtrak 188…the Frankford Junction curve is within the Philaelphia City Limits as well as the 1943 wreck of the Pennsylvania Railroad’s “Advance Congressional, which was caused by a burnt-out journal box, both occurring near one another separate by almost 1000 feet and close to 72 years.
I believe the shot of CTA 7108 is looking west on 120th St. and the cross street behind the car is Peoria St. Note that there are several railroad tracks crossing the street to serve the industries seen in the photo, including one right under the car. I believe the factory in the background with the tower was originally Whitman & Barnes. A quick Google search shows W&B was out of business by 1949. The building is gone now.
I should have said W&B was still in business in 1949.
The photo of NSL cars led by 158 are all stove heated cars which were laid up at Pettibone Yard (the location of the photo) at the beginning of January 1963. With the end of service approaching, the cars (and their labor intensive stoves) were deemed surplus to requirements and drained/stored.