Maps of your city's historic trolley lines

[Cirrus]

This is something that I don't think we've done here, in all my years on SSP. Let's share maps of our city's historic trolley systems.

Here's DC (obviously a contemporary map):


From SDC on wikipedia.

[PHX31]

Here is Phoenix's historic streetcar system.


From the Arizona Street Railway Museum/Marc Pearsall

The old end of the line of the Brill St line is just a couple blocks from my house in my neighborhood. It is interesting that there are very little remnants of the streetcar line/tracks, but there are a few "storefront" type buildings (old tiny grocery store, a couple other little buildings with zero setback compared to the other houses of the neighborhood) that still exist so you know the streetcar line used to be there.

[Steely Dan]

here's chicago's streetcar system in 1937. i've read that the total system length was ~500 miles, but it's always a little tricky to know exactly what that number included. the map combines street cars with the el and some bus routes, along with streetcar lines in the western burbs, so use the legend to find what's what.



source: http://chicagoinmaps.com/chicagostreetcars.html

[Lakelander]

Jacksonville, Florida's Jacksonville Traction Company (red lines)

[brickell]

Tampa


Tampa's Street Car System 1940's map by JSDesign, on Flickr

[arkhitektor]

Salt Lake City (1921)

[Cirrus]

That Chicago map is massive. Considering that New York switched to subways and els earlier than most cities, I wonder if Chicago ever had a claim to the largest trolley network in the world. It wouldn't surprise me.

Maybe LA too.

[mfastx]

Houston's Trolley System
This was at it's peak in 1927.


Source

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by Cirrus

That Chicago map is massive. Considering that New York switched to subways and els earlier than most cities, I wonder if Chicago ever had a claim to the largest trolley network in the world.

from my years on this forum, it seems to me that 3 or 4 dozen various american cities have all laid claim to the ubiquitous "but we used to have the largest streetcar system in the world" mantra. it's been so oft repeated for so many various cities that i think it has become a meaningless distinction.

[PLANSIT]

Denver

[mr1138]

I have found two for Denver. The first is from denverstreetcars.net


The second is from DenverInfill.com and is an overlay over a modern aerial. It actually appears to be more complete than the first map.

[mr1138]

^Whoa, beat me to it.

[ColDayMan]

Cincinnati


http://www.cincinnativiews.net/image...y%20routes.jpg


Dayton


http://www.daytontrolleys.net/histor...ontrackmap.gif

[Mojeda101]

Los Angeles

http://www.lastreetcar.org/wp-conten...ic_Railway.jpg

LA had the largest trolley system in the world in the 1920's.

[Mr Downtown]

With 529 miles of road (1038 miles of single track operated) and 3670 streetcars in 1937, Chicago Surface Lines had few rivals. The only one I've ever heard mentioned as a serious rival was Leningrad. Shore Line factsheet.

[Boquillas]

San Antonio in 1913. Streetcars in the city were horse-drawn starting in 1878, then moved to all-electric by 1890. The system peaked in '26, was dismantled by 1933 for an all-bus system.



source

[Innsertnamehere]

some guy has gone and mapped out all of the old electrified railways in Canada. I found a download link for it about a year ago, but here is what Toronto's streetcar network looked like. yellow is currently existing track, orange is destroyed track.

on a side note, it really is amazing how many Ontario cities had tram networks. small cities like sarnia, peterborough, and cornwall had streetcar networks. there was even a rail line between woodstock and Ingersoll! (two towns of about 37,000 and 13,000)

[Centropolis]

http://www.chicagorailfan.com/stlg1942.gif

St. Louis City and County, 1942. The "real" maps are a little cluttered for a computer screen. Streetcars extended for a 30 miles or so beyond downtown. Not included is the metro east, where there was a massive web of streetcars and electric interurbans linking together the illinois industrial satellites. Truly one of the great streetcar systems of the twentieth century, using streetcars built right here.

[tayser]

still living and breathing



& the current largest network by track KM in the world

[Centropolis]

here's the east side/east st louis.


http://www.chicagorailfan.com/eslmapg.gif