Birney Safety Streetcar No. 224 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Birney Safety Streetcar No. 224
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Birney car 224 in operation on the
Fort Smith Trolley Museum line |
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| Location | Fort Smith Trolley Museum, 100 S. Fourth St., Fort Smith, Arkansas, United States |
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| Built | 1926 |
| Architect | American Car Company |
| NRHP reference No. | 94000465 |
| Added to NRHP | May 19, 1994 |
Birney Safety Streetcar No. 224 is a special old streetcar, also known as a trolley. It's located in Fort Smith, Arkansas. This streetcar is so important that it's listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. It was built in 1926 by the American Car Company. This particular type of streetcar is called a Birney "Safety Car". It was added to the National Register in 1994. Only a few streetcars are on this list, making No. 224 quite unique.
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What Is a Birney Safety Car?
The Birney Safety Car was a new kind of streetcar design. It first appeared in 1915. These cars had important new safety features. They were also lighter than older streetcars. This made them cheaper to run. Because they saved money, Birney cars helped many small towns keep their streetcar systems going.
Birney Car 224's Early Life
Streetcar No. 224 was built and bought in 1926. The Fort Smith streetcar system used several Birney-type cars. They ran until the system closed down on November 15, 1933. This happened when the Fort Smith Light & Traction Company stopped its streetcar service. After its time as a streetcar, car 224 was used as a diner in Ashdown, Arkansas.
Bringing Birney Car 224 Back to Life
Today, Birney car 224 is owned by the Fort Smith Streetcar Restoration Association (FSSRA). It is part of the Fort Smith Trolley Museum (FSTM) collection. Volunteers from the FSSRA worked hard to restore car 224. It started carrying passengers again on May 19, 1991. Exactly three years later, on May 19, 1994, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Riding the Fort Smith Trolley Line
The FSTM streetcar line is also called a trolley line. In many parts of North America, "streetcar" and "trolley" mean the same thing. This line connects Garrison Avenue in downtown Fort Smith. It runs all the way to the gates of the Fort Smith National Cemetery.
How Birney Car 224 Works
Like many streetcars, car 224 is a "double-ended" car. This means it can be driven from either end. It has one door on each side for passengers to enter and exit.
Inside the Streetcar
The seats inside are made of wood. Their backs can be flipped over. This allows the seats to face either end of the car. This type of seat was also called a "walkover" seat. The motorman (driver) could walk down the middle aisle. Then, at the end of the line, they would flip the seat backs over.
Powering the Trolley
The streetcar gets its power from an overhead wire. It uses a trolley pole on its roof to collect 600 Volts of DC electricity. This power runs the car's electric motor. Only one of the two poles is used at a time. The pole used depends on which direction the car is traveling. The car has one truck (a set of wheels and axles). Overall, it is about 27 feet (8.2 m) long.
Other Historic Birney Streetcars
Fort Smith car 224 is one of only three Birney streetcars listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The other two are from the old Fort Collins, Colorado system. They are Fort Collins car 21 and Fort Collins car 22. Fort Collins car 21 still runs on a heritage streetcar line in its hometown.
