Chicago Surface Lines Photos, Part Two

November 16, 2015May 6, 2018David Sadowski 12 Comments

A Pullman emerges from one of the downtown streetcar tunnels that went under the Chicago River, but which one? George Trapp says “car 558 (is) emerging from the East end of the Washington Tunnel at Franklin on an inbound Milwaukee Avenue run.” Andre Kristopans notes that the grades in these tunnels were “VERY steep – something close to 10%. They had very strict rules regarding following distance and speed.”

Thanks to the generosity of George Trapp, here is another generous helping of classic Chicago Surface Lines streetcar photos from his collection. (To see additional photos he has already shared with us, just type “George Trapp” into the search window at the top of this page. Several other posts should come up.)

These pictures date to the “red car” era in Chicago, which began in the early 1920s and ended in 1954. A particular highlight is a half-dozen shots of CSL streetcar 1415 shown in various places along the same route, in pictures taken by the late Joe L. Diaz.

George Trapp notes, “Car #2908 and all of the shots of #1415 were taken on the Webster-Racine line before it’s abandonment on August 30, 1947. Elevated station is the Webster Station closed in 1949 used by Wilson Avenue locals. Webster-Racine was single track with a passing siding under the “L”.” (Bill Shapotkin also identified this as the Webster station.)

My guess is Joe Diaz set out to document this line just prior to the end of streetcar service, judging by the age of the various autos shown in the pictures. The date of abandonment predated the official takeover of CSL by the Chicago Transit Authority by one month.

Bill Shapotkin writes:

Webster/Racine was not widely photographed. As I understand it (from conversation with Roy Benedict), the line operated with one car — two in the “rush.” The two cars would pass under the ‘L’ at Sheffield (only passing track on the otherwise single-track line).

The 1415 was part of the same series as car 1374, the “Matchbox,” which as been restored to operating condition at the Illinois Railway Museum. Earlier this year, the body of car 1137, also part of this series, was unearthed in Wisconsin, although we do not know its ultimate fate.

According to Don’s Rail Photos:

Small St. Louis Cars 1101-1425

These cars were built by St. Louis Car in 1903 and 1906 for Chicago Union Traction Co. They are similar to the Robertson design without the small windows. Cars of this series were converted to one man operation in later years and have a wide horizontal stripe on the front to denote this. A number of these cars were converted to sand and salt service and as flangers.

We also have some interesting street scenes from around 1928 showing various “L” lines in the city. These have a fascination in their own right, especially comparing the “then and now.”

One photo in particular shows the Lindy Theatre, which somehow seems to have escaped the notice of the otherwise very thorough Cinema Treasures web site. Photos posted here would seem to indicate the Lindy was in operation on Madison at Paulina from around 1928 to at least 1937. Cinema Treasures has a different location for this movie theater.

As always, if you can help identify locations, or have interesting facts or reminiscences to add, don’t hesitate to drop us a line. You can leave comments on this post, or write us directly at:

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

FYI there will be several additional posts in this series coming up in the near future, so watch this space.

-David Sadowski

George Trapp notes:

Notice that in the two photos of Sedans, cars 3340 and 3332 that neither car is going to the South end of the line. Car 3340 is only going as far as Wentworth-Cermak looping via Clark, Cermak, Wentworth and Archer back to Clark Northbound. Car 3332 is a Clark local only going as far as Downtown (Van Buren?). It is followed by a small St. Louis car in salt service. Only cars 1398-1423 were one manned in the early 1920’s; the rest remained two man until stored in the Depression with approximately 85 being scrapped along with Brill built 1424-1428 after arrival of 1936 PCC’s in 1937.

Some thought on the Franklin and Elm trackage, looking at the photo of curve, it may have been impossible for double truck cars to pass on that curve, it may have never been upgraded for double truck cars in the 1908-1914 period.

CSL Sedan 3340 crosses the old Milwaukee Road freight tracks near Wrigley Field. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

George Trapp: “Car 5913 at South shops freshly painted signed for the old designation for Western Avenue as Through Route #10.” (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 561 and 1466 at the entrance to the Van Buren streetcar tunnel. 1466 is signed as a demonstration car, i.e. training. You can see another view of this tunnel, taken from the opposite direction, in a previous post:
http://thetrolleydodger.com/2015/02/28/chicago-streetcars-in-black-and-white-part-2/ (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 2908 near the old Webster “L” station, on the Webster-Racine line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

The site of the old Webster “L” station as it appears today, at approximately 950 West Webster. Until the Webster-Racine streetcar line was abandoned in 1947, there was a passing siding here.

CSL 1415 near the Webster “L” station, on the Webster-Racine streetcar line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 1415 on Webster-Racine. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 1415 near rowhouses, on the Webster-Racine line. Can that be a vaulted sidewalk? Perhaps that might be a clue as to the location. (Joe L. Diaz Photo) Rob L. Segal says this location, “is on Webster just west of Lincoln Avenue. Many of the rowhouses in the background are still there on the north side of Webster (652 W. Webster, for example) across from Oz Park.”

1415 yet again, on the Webster-Racine route. This time the destination is clearly visible as Racine and Fullerton. Bill Shapotkin writes, “Believe this photo is taken at Webster/Lincoln (view looks east) — which was the east (south(?)) end-of-the-line. (Note that the cross-street is an angular street. The streetcar (left) would be heading S/B in Lincoln.”
(Joe L. Diaz Photo)

1415 on the Webster-Racine line, near the Webster “L” station on the north-south main line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

1415 again, on the Webster-Racine route. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

According to George Trapp, this is the Webster “L” station, where there was a passing siding, near the midpoint of the Webster-Racine streetcar line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

929 and 1077. The former is signed to go to Dearborn and Polk. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

George Trapp says, “Small Pullman #1039 is Southbound on (the) Lincoln-Rosehill line,” signed to go to Dearborn and Polk. Another writer says 1039 is southbound on Wells at North Avenue, an area now known as Old Town. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

North and Wells today.

Geroge Trapp writes, “Car #1744 (is) on Western at Ravenswood “L” just south of Leland.” This station was completely rebuilt circa 1979-81.

CSL 1739 heads southwest on Ogden, having just passed under the Douglas Park “L”.

CSL 6181, southbound on Halsted. Michael D. Franklin adds, “This picture shows 6181 heading south on Larrabee St between Crosby St and Kingsbury Street. Building with ‘Adams Mfg. Co.’ is still standing at 907 N. Larrabee Ave.”

CSL 1416 at Laramie and Harrison. The Chicago Rapid Transit Company’s Laramie Yard is visible at rear. We are looking to the southwest. The building at rear is still there today.

A view of the same scene at Laramie and Harrison today. The Eisenhower expressway is a short distance south of this location.

The sign on the train station identifies it as Fernwood. That should help us determine the location of CSL 3100. Bill Shapotkin writes, “This picture is on 103rd St (I believe looking east). The car is W/B and about to x/o the C&WI.”

CSL Birney car 2001. Don’s Rail Photos notes that sister car 2003 was ” was built by Brill Car Co in October 1920, (order) #21211. It was retired in 1932 and scrapped in March 1937.” Chances are the same is true of this car. Birneys were generally used in very small cities and were not very successful in Chicago.

CSL 4000 on a charter. The side sign says Cicero (Avenue).

This picture must have been taken during World War II, since this car advertises recruitment in the WACs (Women’s Army Corps). George Trapp adds, “1721-1785 class car painted for WAC is southbound on Clark at Devon signed for Route 22.”

This picture is identified as Ashland north of Roscoe on January 23, 1929. This would be the Ravenswood “L” (today’s Brown Line), and the “L” station one block west is Paulina. We are looking north.

Ashland just north of Roscoe today.

This is identified as Elm Street looking west at Franklin on December 28, 1928, which makes this the mainline Northside “L”. George Trapp notes, “Tracks on Franklin and Elm were not in regular service since at least 1924 if not before, once used as an alternate route for the old Southport-Downtown route. Work cars did use the tracks and had to jump the tracks on Sedgwick and Orleans.”

Here is a view of the “L” looking east from Orleans and Elm. Franklin Street no longer goes through this area and dead-ends at Walton. So, this is a view of the same general area as the previous picture, but looking at it from the other side.

Lincoln Avenue just north of Addison, as it looked on January 28, 1929. That’s the Ravenswood “L” in the background with the Chicago & North Western in the foreground.

Madison and Paulina on November 26, 1928. That is the Logan Square “L”, now part of the CTA Pink Line. You can see a picture taken 9 years later from the station platform here:
http://thetrolleydodger.com/2015/10/12/more-chicago-pcc-photos-part-four/
Comparing the two pictures, we find the same pawn shop in both, along with the Lindy Theatre, here showing Cecil B. De Mille’s 1927 silent film King of Kings, starring H. B. Warner. That would mean we are looking west here instead of east.

Jefferson Street and Van Buren on December 19, 1928. That’s the old Met “L” in the background, which was replaced by the Congress rapid transit line nearly 30 years later.

Lincoln Avenue just south of Sheffield on January 8, 1929.

The same general location today (intersection of Lincoln, Wrightwood, and Sheffiled, looking SE).

Franklin Street looking south at Chestnut on February 20, 1928. In the background, we see the “L” station at Chicago Avenue on what was then the north-south main line.

Franklin looking south from Chestnut today.

As winter approaches, we bid you adieu with this snowy scene showing CSL Peter Witt (aka Sedan) 3332 heading south on Clark at at Menomonee near Lincoln Park; note snow plow behind Sedan with wing extended. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Help Support The Trolley Dodger

This is our 95th post, and we are gradually creating a body of work and an online resource for the benefit of all railfans, everywhere. To date, we received more than 90,000 page views from more than 26,500 individuals.

You can help us continue our original transit research by checking out the fine products in our Online Store. You can make a donation there as well.

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Two New CD Collections of Vintage Steam Train Audio Are Now Available

Here are two new additions to our catalog of vintage train sounds on Compact Disc available in our Online Store. Additional titles, including some rare traction audio CDs, are in the pipeline and will be available soon. We are well on the way towards fulfilling our goal of making the entire Railroad Record Club collection available once again to the public, after being out of print for so many years.

We thank Kenneth Gear for lending us these and many other original LPs from his collection. Thanks to his generosity, you too can now hear these public domain “orphan works” put out by long-gone obscure record labels 40 or 50 years ago.

There is a lot of hard work involved in digitizing these classic recordings, but with the use of modern technology and a lot of plain old hard work, these recordings are sounding better than ever.

TOS-12
Twilight of Steam
# of Discs – 2
Price: $19.95

Record #TOS-12:
The long out-of-print, thrilling audio counterpart to the exciting and controversial 1963 book The Twilight of Steam Locomotives by Ron Ziel. (Book not included.)

Railroads covered include the Reader, Virginia Blue Ridge, Southern Pacific, Bevier & Southern, Mobile & Gulf, Kentucky & Tennessee, Magma Arizona, the Mississippian, Graham County Railroad, Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal, Denver & Rio Grande, East Broad Top, Reading, Canadian Northern, the Strasburg, the Burlington, Buffalo Creek & Gauley, Grand Trunk Western, Alabama Central, Valle de Mexico, Rockton & Rion, Duluth Missabe & Iron Range, and Great Western. These were among the last steam locos in regular service on North American railroads, in recordings made between 1958 and 1966.

Total time – 130:51

FFR
Fast Freight Rolling
# of Discs – 1
Price: $14.95

Record #FFR:
This album represents the ultimate audio documentation of the grand age of the iron horse on the Western Maryland Railway, in recordings made circa 1952-53.

These are the only known audio recordings of the Western Maryland Railway. Every major class of steam motive power operated by the Western Maryland is included. It also includes Western Maryland #6, the last and most modern Shay-type locomotive ever built.

From the Wikipedia:

The Western Maryland Railway (reporting mark WM) was an American Class I railroad which operated in Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. It was primarily a coal hauling and freight railroad, with a small passenger train operation. The WM became part of the Chessie System in 1973, although it continued independent operations until May 1975 after which time many of its lines were abandoned in favor of parallel Baltimore and Ohio Railroad lines. In 1983 it was fully merged into the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, which later was also merged into the Chessie System with the former Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, which is now CSX Transportation.

Total time – 67:38

Chicago Surface Lines Photos, Part One

November 3, 2015December 31, 2016David Sadowski 10 Comments

CSL 6313 heads north past the Balaban & Katz Century Theater, located at 2828 N. Clark. The theater was later gutted and replaced by an indoor mall, but it has since been turned back into a movie theater. According to http://www.cinematreasures.org:
“The Century opened as the Diversey Theater in 1924 at the busy intersection of Clark and Diversey Streets in Lakeview, designed in Spanish Baroque style by architect Edward Eichenbaum of the firm of Levy & Klein, whose work also included the Granada in Rogers Park and the Marbro in Garfield Park. The theater was remodeled in the Art Deco style in the early 1930s, when it was renamed the Century, in honor of the Century of Progress World’s Fair that was held in Chicago during 1933 and 1934.
In 1973, the Century was closed, the interior was completely gutted, and the theater was rebuilt as the Century Shopping Centre, a multi-level shopping mall.
In 2000, the struggling mall gave its uppermost levels over, ironically, to a new seven-screen art house cinema, operated by the Landmark Theatres chain. The small auditoriums were decorated in a neo-Art Deco style, and the ornate Baroque terra-cotta facade was cleaned and restored and given new signage.” (Robert V. Mehlenbeck Photo, Joe L. Diaz Collection)

The great majority of today’s pictures are from the far north side of Chicago. Clicking on each picture with your mouse should bring up a larger version in your browser for closer scrutiny.

Most of these pictures date to the “red car” era in Chicago, which began in the early 1920s and ended in 1954. But a few images are even older than that.

As always, if you can help identify locations, or have interesting facts or reminiscences to add, don’t hesitate to drop us a line. You can leave comments on this post, or write us directly at:

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

FYI there will be several additional posts in this series coming up in the near future, so watch this space.

-David Sadowski

PS- According to www.chicagorailfan.com:

Devon Station (Car Barn)

6454 N. Clark St. (at Devon Ave.)
Opened in 1901
Capacity in 1911: 180 cars
Capacity in 1943: 112 cars inside/144 cars outside
Also administered buses based at Ardmore Garage
Closed September 7, 1957
Operations consolidated into North Park Garage
Building demolished, police station presently occupies location

Help Support The Trolley Dodger

This is our 92nd post, and we are gradually creating a body of work and an online resource for the benefit of all railfans, everywhere. To date, we received more than 86,000 page views from more than 25,000 individuals.

You can help us continue our original transit research by checking out the fine products in our Online Store. You can make a donation there as well.

As we have said before, “If you buy here, we will be here.”

We thank you for your support.

Today’s Landmark Century Theatres, a multiplex on the site of a former movie palace.

CSL 6167 on the Broadway route. (Robert V. Mehlenbeck Photo, Joe L. Diaz Collection)

The extension of the Ashland streetcar across a new bridge over the Chicago River in 1936 was one of the last such line extensions by CSL. We previously posted a photo of the parade celebrating this line extension here:
http://thetrolleydodger.com/2015/02/28/chicago-streetcars-in-black-and-white-part-2/ (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo) Bill Shapotkin adds, “This pic was taken from the Clybourn C&NW passenger station (the platform for the S/B (timetable E/B) North Line (then Milwaukee Division) is visible at left) looking N/B on Ashland. Great pic!”

Clark and Devon in early days.

The east end of Navy Pier in early days, showing how streetcars originally ran on an upper level.

The old Windsor Theatre, which was located at 1225 N. Clark. The film Mary Burns, Fugitive (starring Sylvia Sidney and Melvyn Douglas) was released on November 15, 1935. The theatre is also advertising a “Bank Nite” raffle on Tuesdays. This was a Depression-era promotion that helped bring in customers.
Here is a plot summary of Mary Burns, Fugitive:
“A young woman who owns a coffee shop falls for a handsome young customer, unaware that he is a gangster. The association results in her being tried and sentenced to a long prison term. However, the authorities permit her to escape, hoping that she will lead them to her boyfriend.”
Sounds like a plot inspired at least in part by the story of how John Dillinger was fingered by the “Lady in Red” on July 22, 1934.
According to http://www.cinematreasures.org, “The Windsor Theatre was opened September 20, 1886. The theatre suffered two major fires, and was rebuilt in 1914, opening as part of the Lubliner & Trinz circuit on May 9, 1914. It was one of the earliest projects from the architectural firm of Rapp & Rapp. The theatre was later run by the H & E Balaban chain. It was located on Clark Street near Division Street, in the Gold Coast neighborhood.
The Windsor Theatre was remodeled by the architectural firm Pereira & Pereira in 1936. The Windsor Theatre operated into the late-1950’s, and was razed by 1961.
Today the site is occupied by condominiums and retail.” The scaffolding in this photo would indicate renovations were already underway when this photo was taken. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

A Chicago streetcar railway post office car at Broadway and Ardmore. Such services ended in 1915, early in the CSL era. (Fred Borchert Photo)

Devon Station at Clark and Schreiber. Officially opened for business on April 1, 1901 by the Chicago Union Traction Company, predecessor to the Chicago Railways Company.

CSL 230 crosses the old Milwaukee Road freight tracks, southbound on Clark Street near Wrigley Field.

CTA 310 and 150 at the Museum Loop in Grant Park in 1950. (Robert W. Gibson Photo)

CSL 403 at Broadway and Victoria in 1938. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Broadway and Victoria (approx. 5744 N.) today. We are looking north.

CSL 1008 at Western and Howard.

Western and Howard today, looking north into Evanston. At one time, many Chicago streetcar lines ended at the city limits, and cars simply stopped in the middle of the street, changed ends, and switched over to the other track to head on their way.

George Trapp writes, “875 on Devon followed by 169 class, both cars are pull outs from Devon barn for Western shortly before Western route shortened in Aug. 1948. 169 class cars used as two man on Western, Halsted and Ashland after being displaced by PCC’s on Broadway-State until CTA one manned them.” This is the corner of Devon and Western, because the Devon-North Town State Bank was then located at 2345 W. Devon. We are looking east. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Devon at Western today.

CSL 1665 is eastbound at Irving Park and Southport. You can see the corner of the New Deal-era Lakeview post office at left.

Irving Park and Southport today , we are looking west.

The Lakeview post office at 1343 W. Irving Park Road.

CSL 3353 at Clark and Rogers. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Clark and Rogers today, looking north.

The area around Clark, Arthur, and Schreiber.

The Clark-Arthur loop, looking northeast. (Chicago Surface Lines Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

“Sedans” at Clark and Arthur. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 3343 at Clark and Devon. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 3342 at the Clark-Arthur loop. We are looking east. (Chicago Surface Lines Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 3362 and 3327. A view of the Clark-Schreiber loop, looking west from Ashland and Arthur. George Trapp writes, “The Schreiber loop was the loop via Ravenswood and Schreiber along the South side of the car barn yard generally used by
Broadway-State cars after PCC’s replaced the 169 class and the route cut back from Kedzie in Dec. 1947.” (Chicago Surface Lines Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 1772 and 1771 at Devon and Ravenswood. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 1770 and Peter Witt 3337 at Clark and Schreiber. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 804 appears to be a Broadway-State car on Devon westbound at Clark, with the old Ridge Theater (1554 W. Devon) in the background. According to http://www.cinematreasures.org, “This Edgewater neighorhood theatre, while under management of the Lubliner & Trinz theatre chain, was originally known as the Ellantee Theatre and opened in 1919. The theatre was later renamed the Ridge Theatre. Long ago closed as a movie house, today the building houses a hardware store.” (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

The former Ridge Theater as it appears today.

CSL 977. This, and the next few pictures, were all taken at Ravenswood and Rosehill, by the Rosehill Cemetery. The building at left is a commuter rail station. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 977 begins its trip south to Dearborn and Polk. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Ravenswood and Rosehill today. The building at right is still there, but the train station is long gone.

CSL 1080. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

More Chicago PCC Photos – Part Four

October 12, 2015October 20, 2015David Sadowski 26 Comments

4051 at the Imlay loop at the outer end of route 56 – Milwaukee, during the 1940-41 experiment with door arrangement. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

This is our fourth and last blog post featuring Chicago PCC pictures from the collections of George Trapp. To see the previous three posts, and another featuring Mr. Trapp’s pictures of historic Chicago buses, just type “George Trapp” in the search window on this page. Links to these various posts should come up.

Since this is our 86th post, you can also use the search window to find other topics that interest you.

Today’s photos are mostly comprised of the 83 prewar Chicago PCCs delivered in 1936-37 and retired in 1956. Of these, all were scrapped except for car 4021, which is preserved on static display at the Illinois Railway Museum.

In addition, there are pictures of the two 1934 experimental pre-PCC cars (4001 and 7001), plus the PCC Model B. That car was built by Pullman-Standard and was tested in Chicago during 1934. It later went to Brooklyn, where its brakes failed and it was involved in an accident with a truck. Although the body damage was repaired, the car never ran again and was eventually scrapped in the 1950s.

Both 4001 and 7001 were taken out of service in the 1940s and were used as sheds at South Shops. 7001 was scrapped in 1959, but the aluminum body shell of 4001 is now at IRM.

Interestingly, we have several early photos of PCC 7002, the first prewar car delivered to Chicago Surface Lines in 1936. In addition, there are various photos of car 4051 taken circa 1940-41 when it was tested on route 56 – Milwaukee Avenue, with an experimental door arrangement that was adopted for use on the 600 postwar cars. The design for these cars was finalized by 1941 but they were not ordered until 1945 due to outbreak of World War II.

Thanks to Mr. Trapp’s generosity, we now have at least another 150 additional images of Chicago PCC streetcars. Nearly all of these are previously unknown to me. Mr. Trapp has been collecting these type of pictures for nearly the last 50 years, and has let us borrow some of them so that we might feature them here and add them to our electronic book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story, available through our Online Store.

In the near future, we will post some of Mr. Trapp’s red car pictures of Chicago streetcars, so watch this space.

We also wish to thank the great photographers who took these pictures originally. We have provided attribution for each photo where we have the information.

Of course, the deluxe hardcover book Chicago Streetcar Pictorial: The PCC Car Era 1936-1958, published in June by Central Electric Railfans’ Association, is the premier volume covering the rise and fall of the modern streetcar in the Windy City. That book contains hundreds of great color photos and is a must-have for anyone who is interested in the subject, or even anyone who is interested in knowing what Chicago’s disparate neighborhoods looked like in a bygone era. While I am proud to be a co-author of that work, B-146 is available directly from the publisher. I would be remiss if I did not mention that Trolley Dodger Press is not affiliated with CERA.

In my humble opinion, B-146 is a fantastic bargain and a great value for the money, and I urge you to get a copy if you have not already done so.

My more recent E-book, available on a data disc in PDF format, is intended as a very unofficial supplement and companion to that noble work. One advantage that an electronic book has over a printed one is that more information can be added to it as things become available. We have already added numerous photos, maps, etc. to it, and the material from the Trapp Collection is a tremendous addition, which we are very grateful to have.

On top of that, we are adding another section of photographs to the book covering Chicago’s rapid transit system as it appeared early in the CTA era. That will give the reader a very clear idea of how badly the system was in need of improvement and modernization, a factor in the process by which CTA ultimately decided to eliminate streetcars.

With the E-book, we are not attempting to duplicate anything covered in B-146, which mainly showcases color photography. But there are still lots of great black-and-white photos that deserve to be seen, and lots of other information which could not be included even in a 448-page book. Chicago once had the largest streetcar system in the world, and chances are it will be a long time, if ever, before anyone has the “last word” about it.

If you have already purchased our E-book, and wish to get an updated copy with the additional information, this can be done at little or no cost to you. We always intended that it would be improved over time and offer an upgrade service to our purchasers on an ongoing basis.

As always, clicking on each photo with your mouse should bring up a larger version of the picture in your browser. You may be able to magnify this if you then see a “+” on your screen.

Finally, if you have any interesting tidbits of information to share about the photos you see here, don’t hesitate to let us know, either by making a comment on this post, or by dropping us a line to:

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

Thanks.

-David Sadowski

PS- One of the photos in today’s post features the old Lindy Theatre. For more information, go here.

I think it’s a safe guess that the Lindy was named after Charles Lindbergh (1902-1974), who became an international celebrity with his 1927 solo flight from New York to Paris.

The marquee in this circa-1937 photo advertises the film Hell’s Angels (1930) starring Jean Harlow. She died from kidney failure on June 7, 1937 aged 26, which may explain why the film was being revived here.

Round Up Time in Texas is a 1937 Western starring Gene Autry. Despite the title, most of the film takes place in South Africa.

Dick Tracy is also mentioned on the marquee, and this would have been the 1937 Republic serial starring Ralph Byrd.

Thanks to the generosity of George Trapp, all of the photos in today’s post are being added to our E-book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story.

4051 with experimental door arrangement (1940-41), stopped at Washington and Clark, on route 56 – Milwaukee. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4051 southbound at Milwaukee and Thomas, during the 1940-41 door experiment that led to the configuration used on the postwar cars. Note the West Chicago Street Railway Company building at left. Perhaps the photographer wanted to contrast the old with the new. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Milwaukee and Thomas as it appears today.

CSL 4051 at Kedzie Station circa 1940-41. (CSL Photo)

4051 on route 56 – Milwaukee. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4050, in experimental garb, at Madison and Austin circa 1945-46. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CTA 4050, with advertising signs on its side, at Kedzie Station (car house). John Marshall High School, located at 3250 West Adams, is visible in the background. (CTA Photo)

4041 eastbound on Madison. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4038 at Madison and Austin. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4021, the only prewar Chicago PCC saved, prepares to leave the Madison and Austin loop on August 27, 1940. This car is now at the Illinois Railway Museum. (Chicago Surface Lines Photo, Chicago Historical Society)

CSL 4006 in charter service, possibly on Western. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

4018 in experimental colors, circa 1945-46, at Madison and Austin. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4005, eastbound on Madison. Perhaps it is July 4th. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4030 at the Madison-Austin loop. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7007 on Madison along Garfield Park in 1937. (St. Louis Car Company Photo)

PCC 7026, fitted with experimental roof-mounted forced air ventilation, of a type that was used in Boston, but did not find favor in Chicago. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 7002 at Kedzie Station (car house) as new. (CSL Photo)

Prewar car 7004 and postwar 7148 rub shoulders at Devon Station (car barn) circa 1955. (Charlie Preston Photo)

Prewar car 7002, as new, at South Shops. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7002, possibly on a 1936 inspection trip prior to being put into service. Note the 1934 Ford. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

A builder’s photo of CSL PCC 7002, the first car delivered in 1936.

CSL 7002 at the St. Louis Car Company plant.

The interior of PCC 7002 as delivered. (St. Louis Car Company Photo)

The interior of PCC 7002. (St. Louis Car Company Photo)

CSL 4001 at South Shops. (CSL Photo)

CSL 4001 at the Vincennes and 80th loop. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7001 on Schreiber alongside Devon Station (car barn). (CSL Photo)

CSL 7001 at Clark and North Avenues, with the Chicago Historical Society building at rear (now the Chicago History Museum). (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7001 at the Brill plant in Philadelphia. (Historical Society of Pennsylvania Photo)

CSL 4001 may be on non-revenue trackage at the north end of South Shops. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Red car 5549 and a couple of PCCs are on Clark and Armitage. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

Red car 967 and a postwar PCC are at Lawrence and Clark. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CTA salt spreader AA90, flanked by prewar and postwar PCCs. This work car, originally #1504, was scrapped on September 27, 1956.

CSL cars 5324 and 4008 on 64th just west of Stony Island in the 1940s. This was the east end of the 63rd Street line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL cars 4008 and 6202 on 64th just west of Stony Island in the 1940s. This was the east end of the 63rd Street line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

There were three experimental streetcars built during the development of the PCC car, the CSL 4001 and 7001 and this car, the PCC Model B, shown here being tested in Chicago. The destination sign says South Chicago and 93rd. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

Red Pullman 225, with a postwar PCC follwing behind, on a circa 1956-57 fantrip on State Street. That looks like a 1953 Cadillac at left. The building at rear with the flags is Marshall Field’s. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CSL 7018 eastbound on the west end of Madison, where the street was wider and diagonal parking was allowed. (Heier Industrial Photo)

Postwar PCC 7102 southbound on Clark along Lincoln Park. (Heier Industrial Photo)

A mid-1940s lineup of cars at Kedzie Station (car house) includes prewar PCC 7019 (in “tiger stripes”), some “Sedans,” and other red cars. (Robert V. Mehlenbeck Photo, Joe L. Diaz Collection)

The general consensus is this PCC, towed northbound at Kedzie and Harrison in 1947, may be going to West Shops for repairs. Note that the Kedzie “L” station on the Garfield Park line also served Chicago, Aurora & Elgin interurban trains. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Red Pullman 144 (or, perhaps, 225 masquerading as 144) on a fantrip, followed by postwar PCC 7236. Maurice Klebolt of the Illini Railroad Club promised fans that 144 would be used on a December 1956 fantrip, and 225 was substituted instead, with a piece of red olicloth used to change its number to 144. (Charlie Preston Photo)

Big Pullman 225 is shown here on an October 21, 1956 fantrip, followed by postwar PCC 4406. By this time, red cars ddi not run in regular service, and PCCs were only used on weekdays on routes like Clark-Wentworth. Car 225 is preserved at the Seashore Trolley Museum in Maine.

In this view of Kedzie Station (car house), CSL Peter Witt “Sedan” 3368, at left, was built by Cummings Car Company in 1929. At right we see prewar PCC 4006. When delivered in 1936-37, the first 83 PCCs were not enough to run the busy Madison route. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Prewar PCC 4016, circa 1951, may very well be the first of the one-man conversions. The rear door here is completely blocked off, but soon the City of Chicago insisted on the addition of a rear emergency exit door. This was only a year after the terrible accident where a PCC collided with a gas truck and 33 people were killed. Notice how the middle door (for exit only) has been narrowed to try and keep people from sneaking on without paying. The location is Kedzie Station (car house). (Chicago Transit Authority Photo)

Andre Kristopans writes, “The last shot is indeed looking east on Madison from the Madison station of the Logan Square L. The big building in the background is in the triangle of Ogden-Ashland-Madison and later had the Turtle Wax Turtle on top of it.”
This is apparently a different Lindy Theatre than the one the Cinema Treasures web site says was located at 3437 West Odgen Avenue between 1930 and 1950. Must have been two Lindy Theatres.
The various films advertised on the marquee, and the automobiles, date this picture to circa 1937. The prewar PCC, heading east, may be car 4012. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

More Chicago PCC Photos – Part Three

October 7, 2015August 11, 2023David Sadowski 6 Comments

Although signed for Clark-Wentworth, this shot of 4160 is actually on Madison in Garfield Park. (CSL Photo) George Trapp says he got this picture from the late Robert Gibson.

This is the third of four installments featuring Chicago PCC pictures from the collections of George Trapp. You can find Part One of the Chicago PCC series here, and Part Two here. We also posted some of Mr. Trapp’s photos of historic Chicago buses here.

The fourth and final batch of Mr. Trapp’s PCC pictures will feature both the prewar Chicago PCCs and the experimental cars that preceded them. We will have those posted in the next few days, so check this space.

We also wish to thank the great photographers who took these pictures originally. We have provided attribution for each photo where we have the information.

In my humble opinion, B-146 is a fantastic bargain and a great value for the money, and I urge you to get a copy if you have not already done so.

As always, clicking on each photo with your mouse should bring up a larger version of the picture in your browser. You may be able to magnify this if you then see a “+” on your screen.

Chicago’s postwar PCCs were built by Pullman-Standard (310 cars) and the St. Louis Car Company (290 cars). You can readily tell which ones are which, since the Pullmans are more squarish in appearance, especially the windows, and the St. Louies have more curved lines.

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

Thanks.

-David Sadowski

Thanks to the generosity of George Trapp, all of the photos in today’s post are being added to our E-book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story.

Car 7089 at South Shops.

PCC 7090 at 81st and Halsted.

St. Louis-built 7071 at 81st and Halsted. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

PCC 7096 at 81st and Halsted. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

PCC 7068 at 81st and Halsted on June 9, 1947. (James J. Buckley Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

CSL 7068 on Western. A woman with a very striking 1940s outfit has just gotten off. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo) Mike Franklin adds: “The photo of the young lady stepping from CSL 7068 is looking NE on Western Ave from Berteau Ave. Harms Park is the property for sale to the right and there is enough still remaining on Western Ave to the left to confirm this location.”

A close-up of the previous picture.

7062 as new at St. Louis Car Company.

A St. Louis Car Company photo of 7062’s interior.

Another St. Louis Car Company photo of a 7062’s interior.

Car 7052 heading north on Clark near Lincoln Park. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

7047 at 81st and Halsted. (James J. Buckley Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

7094 southbound on Wentworth at about 44th. That’s the old Stockyards “L” in the rear. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

7047 at 81st and Halsted.

CSL 7047 at 77th and Vincennes. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7035 at South Shops in 1947. (CSL Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

A St. Louis Car Company picture of 7035. With some retouching and airbrushing, it was used in the photo that follows.

The result.

4160 northbound at Clark and Illinois in 1948. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4158, a southbound Broadway-State car, at Clark and Armitage in 1949. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4158 entering the Clark-Howard loop on July 15, 1953. (Thomas H. Desnoyers Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

I can’t make out the car number (41xx) but this is a Pullman heading southbound on route 36 on Broadway and Rosemont, with the old Granada Theatre in the background. The Granada, one of the great Chicago movie palaces, was built in 1926 and demolished around 1990. It was located at 6427 N. Sheridan Road and had 3,443 seats. To the right, just out of view, would have been a Chicago Motor Coach bus garage. This picture was taken in 1948. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

4157 southbound on Clark at Lincoln Park. (Chicago Transit Authority Photo)

4157 and 4156 being delivered to South Shops. CSL records indicate the date is January 18, 1947. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Another view of 4157 and 4156 being delivered to CSL on January 18, 1947. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

4151 northbound at Clark and Webster in 1947. Not sure what a French laundry does. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4109 southbound on Clark and Lincoln Park. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4122 northbound at Clark and Surf in 1947. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4144 southbound on Clark near Irving Park. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4137 is southbound on Clark near 16th, going under the St. Charles Air Line. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

4162 heads south on the Wabash bridge over the Chicago River, most likely in 1948. A new bridge on State Street opened in 1949.

4112 at the Madison-Austin loop in 1948. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

4132, newly repainted in Everglade Green and Cream, leaves the Madison-Austin loop on June 17, 1951. Note the difference in the roof treatment between this and some other cars in this paint scheme. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

4112 southbound at Clark and LaSalle in early 1947. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4112 going through track work northbound at Clark and Victoria, most likely in the summer of 1947. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4097 southbound at Clark and North Avenues in the spring of 1947. The building at rear is the Chicago Historical Society, now the Chicago History Museum. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4089 at the Madison-Austin loop on November 17, 1951. Note the unusual off-center placement of the car number. George Trapp says these are the same sort of “fuzzy” numbers that were applied to buses as well. (Thomas H. Desnoyers Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

George Trapp thinks this photo of 4076 is either on Vincennes or the wide part of Clark. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4076 at 81st and Halsted in October 1946. (William A. Raia Collection)

CSL 4075 at Clark and Granville in late 1946. George Trapp notes, “(This) car has (the) cream standee window band, all cars delivered like this (were) repainted in early 1947 to match later deliveries.” (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4079 westbound on Madison at either Sangamon or Morgan. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4067 on October 8, 1946 at the Pullman plant. It was delivered to CSL on the 24th.

CSL 4067 southbound on route 22. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4065 southbound at Clark and Pratt. The car at right is a body style known as a “fastback.” (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

4066 crosses the old Milwaukee Road freight tracks near Wrigley Field. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

CSL 4062, the first postwar PCC delivered, as new at 77th and Vincennes, most likely in September 1946. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

4065 being delivered at South Shops. The date would be October 19, 1946 according to CSL records. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

A CSL photo of brand new 4062. It was put into “preview” service in the Loop for a few days in September 1946 to introduce the postwar PCCs to Surface Lines riders.

4062 at the Pullman plant on September 3, 1946, just prior to being shipped to Chicago. It arrived there on the 9th.

A CSL photo showing the interior of 4062 as new.

A Surface Lines photo showing a side view of 4062, built by Pullman.

More Chicago PCC Photos – Part Two

October 1, 2015October 20, 2015David Sadowski 10 Comments

CTA 7100, as repainted. George Trapp notes, 7100 “may be (the) first painted in the ugly Everglade Green and Cream.” If so, this picture was probably taken in 1951. CTA chose a darker color green for repainting, since they were having difficulty matching the lighter Mercury Green paint, which had a tendency to fade over time. There were some variations in the roof treatment on some cars, and you can see examples of that in CERA Bulletin 146. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

Today we offer a third installment of pictures from the collections of George Trapp. You can find Part One of the Chicago PCC series here, and we also posted many photos of historic Chicago buses here.

Thanks to Mr. Trapp’s generosity, we now have close to another 150 additional images of Chicago PCC streetcars. Nearly all of these are previously unknown to me. Mr. Trapp has been collecting these type of pictures for nearly the last 50 years, and has let us borrow some of them so that we might feature them here and add them to our electronic book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story, available through our Online Store.

Mr. Trapps’ photos are an embarrassment of riches. Since there are too many to post all at once, check this space in coming days from further installments in this series.

This time out, a few of the pictures are in color, and we have done some restoration work on them. When older color prints have faded or have developed a color cast, sometimes we can correct for this using today’s computer technology.

In my humble opinion, B-146 is a fantastic bargain and a great value for the money, and I urge you to get a copy if you have not already done so.

As always, clicking on each photo with your mouse should bring up a larger version of the picture in your browser. You may be able to magnify this if you then see a “+” on your screen.

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

Thanks.

-David Sadowski

Thanks to the generosity of George Trapp, all of the photos in today’s post are being added to our E-book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story.

CSL 7100 when newly delivered. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7108, southbound on route 22. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 7108 at 81st and Halsted on August 15, 1947. (James J. Buckley Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

Glare on the front of the car makes the number more difficult to see, but it’s 4054 at 81st and Halsted. Since the cars are all signed for CSL, this photo probably dates to 1947.

CTA 4052 southbound on Western just north of North Avenue (see the 1607 address at right), making that the old Humboldt Park “L” at the rear. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4060, probably in 1947. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

PCC 4061, a St. Louis product, southbound on Halsted. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

CSL 4061 southbound on route 22, probably in 1947. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

A builder’s photo of Pullman PCC 4172’s interior.

A builder’s photo of Pullman PCC 4172 as new.

Another builder’s photo of Pullman PCC 4172’s interior.

A builder’s photo of Pullman PCC 4172 as new.

An early color photo of CSL 4179.

The boxiness of the Pullmans, compared to the St. Louis version, is clearly evident in this side view of CSL 4179.

4306 up in the air at the Pullman plant.

4346 is southbound on Clark at Lunt in this 1948 view. A banner on the front of the car heralds “Another New CTA Streetcar.” This one was delivered on December 29, 1947. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

This Pullman PCC is northbound on route 36 Broadway-State. Andre Kristopans adds, “on State, between Pershing and 40th. The building is the old cable powerhouse and carbarn. Note in background the two-level bridge. Bottom is CR&I from the IC to Stock Yards, top is the Stock Yards L.” (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

State between Pershing and 40th as it appears today. The building at left is the Dawson Technical Institute, part of the City Colleges of Chicago. It was established in 1968.

Remnants of the the two-level bridge Andre refers to. The lower level took the Chicago & Rock Island from the Illinois Central to the Stock Yards, on top was the old Stock Yards “L”, which closed in 1957.

Is 4233 coming or going? I guess a case could be made either way. The car doesn’t seem to have any dents, and there isn’t a logo. Yet it’s not shiny, either, although that could simply be due to the weather. That decides it- this car was scrapped on 8/20/53 and delivered on 3/6/48, so this must be its arrival. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Pullman PCC 4259 is turning from diversion trackage on Chicago Avenue onto southbound Halsted on July 30, 1952. This would be due to the bridge carrying Halsted over the Chicago River being out of service. The landmark Montgomery Wards complex is at rear. (Thomas H. Desnoyers Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

PCC 4232 is northbound on Clark at Armitage (on route 22) in this June 1948 view. Note the lack of either a CSL or CTA logo on the side of this car. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

It’s May 1951, and CTA 4248, newly repainted in Everglade Green and Cream, is at 119th and Morgan on the south end of route 36 – Broadway-State. There is an ad for Gibson refrigerators on the side of the car– not the same company that makes guitars. (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

The interior of a PCC on the St. Louis Car Company assembly line. Car 7227 is ahead, which means this is probably either 7226 or 7228. All were delivered to CTA on March 29, 1948.

This picture of CTA 7129 has the appearance of a posed shot. The woman at right is apparently a “Bobby Soxer.” According to the wikipedia, “A bobby sock is a type of sock that was especially fashionable in the 1940s and 1950s. Bobby socks had thick uppers that were turned down to form a thick cuff at ankle height. They were sometimes worn by girls as part of a school uniform. They were popular to wear with saddle shoes, loafers, or Oxfords.” My mother was a Bobby Soxer. 7129, delivered on January 20, 1948, is labelled as “Another New CTA Streetcar.” (Krambles-Peterson Archive)

St. Louis-built 7155 is on Ravenswood Avenue with the Chicago & North Western embankment in the background. The side sign advertises AM radio station WGN, which still offers news and sports, but very little music nowadays. (CTA Photo)

CTA 7142, “Another New CTA streetcar,” is southbound at Wentworth and 24th. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

7178 and 7199 at Devon Station (car barn) circa 1954. George Trapp says you can tell this is Devon since they had wooden beams near the front, not steel. (Charlie Preston Photo)

PCC 7179 in front of red car 5096. From the destination sign you would think we are southbound on Western Avenue. Not sure what route the older car is on. Don’s Rail Photos says, “5001 thru 5200 were built by Brill in 1905, #14318, for the Chicago City Ry. where they carried the same numbers. They were rebuilt in 1908 to bring them up to the standard of the later cars.” George Trapp adds, “car 5096 could be on way from Archer car barn to 77th shops for scrapping as these cars were taken out of service in 1948 after Archer was converted to bus. Car 7179 may be in service on Western before official date of PCC service on Western as photo looks to be in Summer of 1948, 7179 has no logo.” Andre Kristopans writes, “I would bet at Western and 71st SB. The 5000 would have been on 67th-69th going to 71st & California. It looks like they are changing crews as the conductor is walking towards the car.” On the other hand, George Trapp says, ” Andris Kristopans mentions that he thinks it was taken near 71st St. because 5096 was on the 67th-69th-71st Route. I don’t believe this to be the case as that route used one man MU cars. Also, if you enlarge the photo, car 5096 is missing its side route sign box, there’s no glass in the upper sash window opening, the front destination sign seems to be missing as well. Perhaps the conductor of car 7179 just finished throwing the switch so it could go into the 79th loop and had to wait for it to pass so he could throw it back to the straight route for 5096 to continue south to 79th Street to go East. Car 7179 looks very pristine and is missing a CTA logo so this has to be right around the Aug. 1st official debut of PCC’s on Western or possibly earlier. The run number indicates a car from Devon Depot.” (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

This photo of PCC 7195 was probably taken by the CTA and the car is heading south on Clark Street opposite Lincoln Park. The ad is for TV station WBKB, which was originally called W9XBK and was Chicago’s first television station starting in 1940. The B and K in WBKB stood for the owners, the Balaban and Katz chain of movie palaces. It was eventually a CBS affiliate on channel 4 and became WBBM-TV channel 2 when the FCC reassigned frequencies. There was a second WBKB then on channel 7, now WLS-TV, and there is yet a third WBKB nowadays in Alpena, Michigan, a CBS affiliate that airs on channel 11.

I believe this iconic picture of CTA 7213, leaving Clark and Kinzie on the last Chicago streetcar run in the early morning hours of June 21, 1958, is a CTA photo.

CTA 7218 is heading north on shoofly trackage at Hasted and Congress circa 1952, while the bridge that would take Halsted over the Congress (later Eisenhower) expressway was being built. There was a photo taken near this location, facing west, in our first post of PCC photos from the Trapp Collection. (Originally from the collections of Joe L. Diaz)

CTA 7254, southbound on Clark and Wacker on April 6, 1950, having just crossed over the Chicago River. (Traction Chicago Photo)

George Trapp writes, “7244 is westbound on Devon at Ravenswood, (the) car is getting ready to turn north on Ravenswood , then will turn East on Schreiber and lay over just west of Clark before making it’s run to 119th-Morgan.” Jeff Wien adds, “Car 7244 is a Broadway-State car on Devon at Ravenswood heading west. The conductor was throwing the switch so that the car would head north on Ravenswood to Schreiber. With the 36 119-Morgan destination sign, I would gather that the car was going to make a run to the south end of the line.” (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

PCC 4390, “Another New CTA Streetcar,” is heading eastbound on Roosevelt between Paulina and Ashland in 1948. Route 9 – Ashland cars ran on Paulina between Lake and Roosevelt, since streetcars were not allowed on boulevards, but Ashland never had PCCs and this car is not in service. In the background at left we see the marquee of the Broadway Strand Theatre. According to http://www.cinematreasures.org, “The Broadway Strand Theatre opened on November 10, 1917 on Roosevelt Road (then still called 12th Street) at Ashland Avenue on the Near West Side (close to what is today the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center). In its prime, this theatre had a 2/8 Kimball theater organ.
The Broadway Strand Theatre was demolished in 1998 after a long period of disuse.” A Chicago Motor Coach bus is at right, and a route 12 – Roosevelt Road red car behind the PCC. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

PCC 7267, “Another New CTA Streetcar,” stopped at a safety island southbound on route 49 – Western. (Ed Frank, Jr. Photo)

CTA 4402 at the Western and 79th terminal, ready to head back north. (Traction Chicago Photo)

The curved lines of St. Louis-built PCC 4404 are evident in this view. The car is signed for Western and Devon on route 49, meaning we are heading northbound. Likely, this picture was taken prior to the opening of the CTA loop at Western and Berwyn on August 1, 1948. George Trapp adds that this photo was probably taken “between Aug. 10th, 1948 when the car was delivered and Dec. 12th, 1948 when Berwyn became the official North terminal. Before Dec. 12th, 1948 the Schreiber Loop at the Devon Depot was the North terminal when PCC’s were put on Western and the route was cut back from Howard on the North and 111th on the South.” (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

It would appear that CTA L-201 is taking PCC 7142 off to be scrapped in this scene from 77th and Vincennes. The scrap date for 7142 was May 23, 1958, which is probably about when this picture was taken. (J. Schmidt Photo)

CTA 4384 is apparently southbound on Western in the mid-1950s. and signed to go only as far as 69th, making this a pull-in.

A PCC passes the historic Pui Tak Center Building in Chinatown while heading south on route 22. The building is at 2216 South Wentworth Avenue, just south of Cermak Road. The car at left is a 1957 Buick.
There is a similar (better, actually) picture taken at this location by Charles L. Tauscher on page 211 of CERA Bulletin 146.

An undated view of PCC 4391 at the Illinois Railway Museum, probably in the 1980s.

CTA 4248 is heading north on Halsted at Root on the south side in this July 21, 1952 view. The occasion was the Democratic Convention, held at the nearby International Amphitheatre, which took place from July 21 to the 26th. The Republican Convention was held there as well between July 7th and the 11th. The Dems nominated Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson for president, and the GOP General Dwight D. Eisenhower. (Thomas H. Desnoyers Photo, Krambles-Peterson Archive)

More Chicago PCC Photos – Part One

September 27, 2015July 26, 2020David Sadowski 9 Comments

CTA 4061, a product of St. Louis Car Company, heads southbound on route 8 – Halsted near Congress. A shoofly is under construction to divert streetcars around the site where a bridge will soon be built for the Congress expressway. The old Garfield Park “L” at rear remained in service until the new Congress median rapid transit line opened in June 1958. In this area, the “L” ran just north of the highway. Other photos taken in this area show the shoofly in use during 1952. Car 4062, the next in sequence, was built by Pullman and was the first postwar PCC delivered to Chicago Surface Lines. Despite being numbered lower, 4061 was delivered 10 months later. (Edward Frank, Jr. Photo)

I like to think of this web site as a collaborative effort with our readers. Since we started this enterprise at the beginning of this year, I believe I have learned as much from you as vice versa, and today’s post is but the latest example of how that can work to everyone’s benefit. If people are willing to share their material with us, and this seems to be happening with increasing frequency, it is probably because our previous 80 posts have shown that we are serious about the original research we are engaged in, and sharing it with you.

Thanks to the incredible generosity of George Trapp, we now have close to another 150 images of Chicago PCC streetcars that we can post. Nearly all of these are previously unknown to me. Mr. Trapp has been collecting these type of pictures for nearly the last 50 years, and has let us borrow some of them so that we might feature them here and add them to our electronic book Chicago’s PCC Streetcars: The Rest of the Story, which is available through our Online Store.

Mr. Trapps’ photos are an embarrassment of riches. Since there are too many to post all at once, check this space in coming days from further installments in this series.

In my humble opinion, B-146 is a fantastic bargain and a great value for the money, and I urge you to get a copy if you have not already done so.

As always, clicking on each photo with your mouse should bring up a larger version of the picture in your browser. You may be able to magnify this if you then see a “+” on your screen.

This being our 81st post, perhaps it is fitting that several of the pictures here were taken at 81st and Halsted.

thetrolleydodger@gmail.com

Thanks.

-David Sadowski

PS- I did some checking on the Railway Negative Exchange, the source for many of the photos in today’s post. It was started by Warren Miller (1923-1989) who operated out of California. Upon Mr. Miller’s passing, his collection went to his nephew, Bob Hall, who I understand was still continuing these efforts as of 1996. I do not know whether they are still in business today.

All the photos from today’s post, and many more courtesy of Mr. George Trapp, are being added to our E-book this week, along with a section covering Chicago’s rapid transit system early in the CTA era.

7213 and 7274 are side-by-side in this scene from 81st and Halsted. As the south end of the busy Clark-Wentworth route, it was a favorite place for railfan photographers (and also close to the south terminus of route 8 – Halsted’s PCC at 79th). Due to the advertising signs on the PCCs, this photo is from 1950 or later. 7213 was the last streetcar to run in Chicago in 1958. Jon Habermaas adds, “The cars at 81st and Halsted were turned by wye-ing using a portion of abandoned track of the former Halsted line to 111th.” (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

The interior of prewar PCC 4051, as it appeared in July 1939, at the Madison and Austin loop. Circa 1940-41, CSL modified the doors on this car as part of their work on the development of the postwar cars. With the revised configuration, 4051 was tested extensively on route 56 – Milwaukee, which did not otherwise use PCCs. (S. Walker Photo)

CTA 4400 at Ashland and 71st. This picture was probably taken in the Fall of 1952. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CTA 7122, signed for route 49 – Western, at Ashland and 71st. The election ad on the side of the car and the lack of leaves on the trees would date this picture to the Fall of 1952. Sherwood Dixon (1896-1973) was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for governor that year, losing to State Treasurer William G. Stratton, who served two terms. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC 7132 going south on route 36 – Broadway-State, having just passed the Santa Fe Freight Office. Just to the left of the streetcar, you can see an entrance to the State Street subway, which opened in 1943. That looks like a Continental Air Transport bus behind the PCC. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CTA PCC 7262 at the Western and 79th loop when it was brand new. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC 7116 is laying over at 119th and Morgan before heading north on route 36 – Broadway-State. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC 7228, signed for route 36 Broadway-State, crosses the Chicago River towards the Loop. This car was delivered March 29, 1948, and scrapped March 1, 1957, a service life of about 9 years. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CTA 7116, built by St. Louis, at the Museum Loop. The Field Museum of Natural History would be off to the left, as is Lake Shore Drive. At rear, we can see the old Chicago Park District headquarters and Soldier Field. This loop was built to bring large numbers of visitors to A Century of Progress in 1933, Chicago’s second World’s Fair. The Illinois Central suburban electric tracks are at right. The streamlined moderne Park District building was built as the headquarters of the World’s Fair administration. Unfortunately it was demolished as part of the project to renovate Soldier Field. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC 4057 is laying over at Cottage Grove and 115th before heading north on route 4. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

St. Louis-built PCC 4056. At irst I thought this was 81st and Halsted, but as Mike Engelberg points out, “Notice there is only a single track on this street. Therefore it is not at 81st and Halsted. Methinks this is on Emerald south of 79th, particularly because the roll sign is for Halsted route 8, not Clark-Wentworth route 22. Also compare the two-story building here versus the two-story building in photos of 81st and Halsted. They are not the same.”
That appears to be a 1949 Ford at right, but this picture was taken later, due to the presence of advertising frames on the side of the streetcar. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

St. Louis-built PCC 4056, signed for route 4 – Cottage Grove, has just crossed the Chicago River. While the iconic Wrigley Building and Tribune Tower are at rear, the Sun-Times building (1958) had not yet been built when this picture was taken. Note a Chicago Motor Coach bus at rear. CTA purchased Motor Coach’s assets as of October 1, 1952, probably not too long after this picture was taken. In the 1950s, some Cottage Grove cars (usually signed as Route 38) went north of the river and terminated at Grand and Navy Pier. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC service on Cottage Grove was mainly provided by prewar PCCs in the early 1950s, but here is postwar car 7044, which has been converted to one-man. (And we do mean “man,” since CTA did not hire any female operators until 1974.) Here, we are at Cottage Grove and 115th, the south end of the Cottage Grove line on route 4. The car is using route 38 as a sign although PCCs never ran there. The reason is the northern terminus of route 4 was changed, and this roll sign had the correct end point. 7044 was delivered on April 29, 1947 and was scrapped on January 16, 1957, a service life just short of 10 years. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

St. Louis PCC 4054 at 81st and Halsted. It was delivered on July 17, 1947 and scrapped on January 10, 1957, a service life of less than 10 years. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

PCC 4227, at Clark and Howard, prepares to head south on route 22 – Clark-Wentworth. The building on the left is still there. You would hardly recognize this location, which has been converted to an outdoor cafe. When this turnback loop was constructed, the surface and rapid transit systems competed against each other and there was little effort to coordinate them. After CTA was created, buses were diverted to bring passengers directly to the Howard “L” terminal, some distance behind the scene of this photo. Car 4227, a Pullman product, was delivered on March 7, 1948, and scrapped on August 15, 1953, a service live of less than 5 1/2 years. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

A current view of the location of the previous picture. Streetcars once ran right between these two buildings. Interestingly, the address on the building at right has been changed from 7547 to 7545. Jeff Wien writes, “The building identified now as 7545 is not the same structure that was there in streetcar days. The original building was torn down and replaced with a new brick building which looks similar as a part of the redevelopment of the Clark/Howard Mall about 15 to 20 years ago. How the address of the two commercial spaces located at almost the same spot could change by two digits is something that only the County Assessor would be able to explain.”

CTA 7207 at Schreiber and Clark. Half the car barn lacked a roof due to a fire in the early 1920s. This photo probably dates to circa 1955-56 due to the presence of a prewar car at rear, which would have been used on route 49 – Western. 7207 had a scrap date of July 30, 1958, meaning it lasted until the end of Chicago streetcar service on June 21st of that year. The “Enter at Rear” sign means this car was still being used as two-man, with a conductor. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CSL 7047, delivered on May 3, 1947, at 81st and Halsted, site of many railfan photos back in the day. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CSL 4010, in 1945-46 experimental paint, heads east at 5322 West Madison. The Surface Lines tried out various color schemes before deciding on the iconic combination of Mercury Green, Croydon Cream, and Swamp Holly Orange for the postwar cars. Interestingly, none of the six cars that were repainted had the exact color scheme that was ultimately selected. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

Prewar PCC 7027, in “tiger stripes,” heads east at 5054 West Madison. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

The experimental pre-PCC car 7001, built by Brill in 1934, spent its final years as a shed at 77th and Vincennes before being scrapped in 1959. It was briefly considered for purchase by the fledgling Illinois Electric Railway Museum, but was passed up because its windows were considered to be at the wrong height for its intended use as a hot dog stand. Ideas about historic preservation were different back then. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

Prewar PCC 4050, in experimental colors, heads east about a block from the turnaround loop at Madison and Austin on route 20. This photo was taken circa 1945-46 and you can just barely make out a Chicago & West Towns streetcar further back. Austin Boulevard is the boundary between Chicago and Oak Park. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

CSL 4080 heads southbound on the route 22 – Clark-Wentworth. According to Jeff Wien, this is “Vincennes Avenue near 76th.” (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Pullman-built PCC 4205, without a logo on the side, does have a sign at front heralding “Another New CTA Streetcar.” It was delivered on on February 18, 1948 and is shown here at 81st and Halsted, the south end of route 22 – Clark-Wentworth. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Brand new PCC 4315, which already appears to have been sideswiped by something, does not have a CTA logo on the side in this view taken at the loop at State and 84th. But it does have a banner across the front advertising “Another New CTA Streetcar.” This car was delivered in December 5, 1947, just two months after the CTA takeover. (Joe L. Diaz Photo)

Experimental 1934 pre-PCC car 4001, built by Pullman. This is similar to a photo on page 5 of CERA Bulletin 146, although it is a different photo. They may have been taken at the same time, however, and if so, the date would be July 1936. The location is 78th and Vincennes. It’s definitely early, since the trolley is still painted like a barber pole.

Some PCCs are visible at rear in this view of the barn at 77th and Vincennes. But the foreground shows both Twin Coach buses and trolley coaches. George Trapp says, “The trolley buses in the photo with the new Twin Coach gas buses are St. Louis Car products, also new in early spring of 1948 and mainly used on 78 Montrose line.” Jeff Wien adds that they were also used on route 80 – Irving Park.

PCC 4396 southbound at Clark and Devon. The election poster would indicate a date of 1955 for this picture, since, as Jeff Wien notes, this car has already been repainted in Everglade Green, which the CTA started doing around July 1952. (Railway Negative Exchange Photo)

Chicago Cable Cars and Streetcar RPOs

May 29, 2015April 20, 2016David Sadowski 14 Comments

Except for a ceremonial event in 1946, the era of Chicago streetcar RPOs ended on November 21, 1915, less than two years into the CSL era. This photo was taken on October 14, 1938 by Edward Frank Jr., who described the car’s colors as tannish yellow gold with gold letters and trimmings. The location is the Lincoln Avenue car barn (aka “station”). According to Don’s Rail Photos, “H2 was built by West Chicago Street Ry in 1895 as 3. It became CRys 3 and renumbered H2 in 1913. It became CSL H2 in 1914.” Presumably it survived at least until 1938 as some sort of work car.

Most people are likely unaware that Chicago once operated an extensive network of cable cars, or that cable cars and streetcars were used as mobile post offices between 1895 and 1915.

Mainline Railway Post Offices were in use in the United States from 1862 to 1978 (with the final year being operated by boat instead of on rails), but for a much briefer era, cable cars and streetcars were also used for mail handling in the following 15 cities*:

Baltimore
Boston
Brooklyn
Chicago
Cincinnati
Cleveland
New Bedford, Massachusetts
New York City
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Rochester, New York
St. Louis
San Francisco
Seattle
Washington, D.C.

*As noted by some of our readers, this list does not include interurban RPOs.

Streetcar RPOs represented a real improvement in service in their time, but eventually were replaced by trucks as vehicles and roads improved in the early 20th century. These special trolleys collected, moved, sorted, and cancelled mail along their routes through the city. Many had slots where mail could be deposited on the street.

The Mobile Post Office Society has published several monographs on streetcar RPO operations, including one on Chicago written by John R. Mason and Raymond A. Fleming.

Chicago’s streetcar RPOs survived into the Surface Lines era, but just briefly, last being used on November 21, 1915. However, there was one later ceremonial operation during a 1946 stamp collector’s convention.

Likewise, although the last Chicago cable car ran in 1906, there was also one later operation at the 1948-49 Chicago Railroad Fair. As we discussed in an earlier post, the success of this fair is widely regarded as having led to the creation of McCormick Place on Chicago’s lakefront.

Although this short cable car demonstration line is long gone, car #524 itself, renumbered to #24, is still in service in San Francisco as of this writing. Here is a history of the car:

Built by the Mahoney Bros., San Francisco, in 1887 for the Ferries & Cliff House Railway (Powell Street Railway). The Mahoney Bros. subcontracted with Burnham-Standeford in Oakland, California, to build its cars. Assigned to the Sacramento-Clay cable car line before the Earthquake and Fire of 1906, the United Railroads transferred it back to the Powell Street cable car lines in 1907. Renumbered from original No. 534 to No. 524 by the Market Street Railway on December 16, 1929.

CSL car #6, a small single truck streetcar RPO from 1891, is preserved at the Fox River Trolley Museum.

As a further example of how times have changed, we offer a couple of rare Chicago transit memos from 1893. Most likely lots of such memos circulated back in the days before e-mail, but few have survived.

The first memo is on Chicago City Railway Co. stationary and is dated November 13, 1893:

Mr. Jos(eph) Gillett.

Please read the following to the men working on the motor cars with you.

The men must work near the door where the light is and stay there, and not stay where it is dark to avoid the use of candles.

By Order of,

Wm. (William) Barthwaite (Master Mechanic)

The second note, on plain paper, is also addressed to the same individual and likely was preserved by him and his heirs:

Joe Gillet (sic?) 23/93

There is a complaint from 39 Barn that many nuts work loose from Scrapers & Sand-boxes. My orders are to prick-punch all nuts.

You will see that this is done.

Respect(fully)

F. Bundy

I had assumed that “prick-punch all nuts” meant to tighten them some more so they don’t come loose, but it turns out I was wrong. Dan Gornstein says:

Regarding the prick punching, this is a practice of disturbing the bolt threads at the top of a tightened nut, with either a chisel or, as the name suggests, a “prick punch,” with a common name of a Center Punch.

H. Porter adds:

A “prick-punch” is taking a centerpunch and dotting the nut with it after the nut is tightened. This slighly deforms the nut making it less susceptible to vibrating loose. You can buy nuts with this slight deformity already there. Hand tools will still take them on and off.

-David Sadowski

PS- You can read the book Mail By Rail: the Story of the Postal Transportation Service here. On page 231, the authors cite May 6, 1950 as the date when the “last true trolley car R.P.O.” ran in America on the Pacific electric interurban.

Seth Bramson comments:

I think that interurban electric railways should be included, as they ran under wires, and two that do not appear on the list are Los Angeles (Pacific Electric operated three or four RPO routes) and the one in Maine.

I would have to look it up but there was a trolley RPO route in lower Maine, along the seacoast, I believe and there might have been one in New Hampshire. I can’t think of them right now, but I believe that there were one or two other trolley RPO routes, not shown, perhaps because they were considered interurban.

A couple of other “factoids” regarding electric mail service: Seattle’s RPO was titled “Seattle & Seattle” and operated on a pretty large circuit; Baltimore’s last trolley RPO operated into the early 1930s; Rochester’s street RPOs were titled “Car Collection Service B, C or D”—I don’t think there was an “A;” Buffalo had a horse drawn wagon service with a postmark similar to RPO but I would have to look it up; great interurbans such as the CA&E, CNS & M, CSS & SB, Texas Electric, Illinois Terminal, Sacramento Northern and others did have mail contracts but for closed pouch only, no RPOs.

Because I was working in NY at the time, and had become friendly with the great RPO collector and clerk, Sidney Fingerhood, and went down to Penn Station regularly to see the last RPO trains operate, I was invited, in early July of 1976, to ride the very last trip of the N Y & Wash RPO, all the way from NY Penn to Washington Union Station, but because I had to be at work the next day, I could only ride to Newark, but at least I can say that I was the only civilian who rode the very last trip of the last rail RPO in America. (And, yes, the comments are correct: a boat RPO on, I think, Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire did operated until 1978 or thereabouts.)

It was a great and efficient service and the terrible problems with the postal service really began after the destruction of the RPO system, the blame due, in no small part, to Eisenhower, for a good few reasons not necessary to elaborate here.

An example of a “duplex” cancellation made on a Chicago streetcar RPO in 1902.

Chicago City Railway cable trailer 209 in October 1938. Supposedly built around 1892, it appears to be a replica fabricated by CSL in 1934 using some original parts. It is now preserved at the Illinois Railway Museum. (Alfred Seibel Photo)

San Francisco Municipal Railway #524 in Chicago on August 28, 1948 at the Chicago Railroad Fair. This was the actual last cable car to operate in Chicago, and was done under the sponsorship of the Western Pacific Railroad. #524 has been renumbered #24 and is still in service in San Francisco after being extensively rebuilt by Muni in 1958. On September 2, 1956, car No. 524 also made the last trip on the Washington-Jackson line as the SF cable car network was consolidated.

A rare Chicago City Railway Company memo dated November 13, 1893, ordering a reduction in the use of candles.

An 1893 note regarding a complaint from “39 Barn,” which was located at the corner of 39th (Pershing) and Cottage Grove.

Chicago streetcar RPO cancellation – Wentworth Avenue line, 7-1-1909.

Chicago streetcar RPO cancellation – North Clark St. line, 11-13-1902.

Chicago streetcar RPO cancellation – Milwaukee Avenue line, 2-26-1906.

The Mobile Post Office Society published a 72 page monograph on the Chicago streetcar RPO service in 1983.

St. Louis cable cars on Broadway looking north from Chestnut Street, 1894.

This commemorative mailing gives November 11, 1929 as the last day of streetcar RPO service in the United States (not counting interurbans).

American Streetcar R.P.O.s: 1893-1929

Baltimore
Boston
Brooklyn
Chicago
Cincinnati
Cleveland
New Bedford, Massachusetts
New York City
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Rochester, New York
St. Louis
San Francisco
Seattle
Washington, D.C.

*As noted by some of our readers, this list does not include interurban RPOs.

Our latest E-book American Streetcar R.P.O.s collects 12 books on this subject (over 1000 pages in all) onto a DVD data disc that can be read on any computer using Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is free software. All have been out of print for decades and are hard to find. In addition, there is an introductory essay by David Sadowski.

The rolling stock, routes, operations, and cancellation markings of the various American street railway post office systems are covered in detail. The era of the streetcar R.P.O. was relatively brief, covering 1893 to 1929, but it represented an improvement in mail handling over what came before, and it moved a lot of mail. In many places, it was possible to deposit a letter into a mail slot on a streetcar or cable car and have it delivered across town within a short number of hours.

These operations present a very interesting history, but are not well-known to railfans. We feel they deserve greater scrutiny, and therefore we are donating $1 from each sale of this item to the Mobile Post Office Society, in support of their efforts.
# of Discs – 1
Price: $19.95