Sheboygan Light, Power and Railway Company Car 26 facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Sheboygan Light, Power and Railway Company Car #26
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#26 at East Troy
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 Location in Wisconsin
Location in the United States
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| Location | 2015 Division Street East Troy, Wisconsin |
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| Built | 1908 |
| Built by | Cincinnati Car Company |
| Restored | 2005 |
| Restored by | East Troy Electric Railroad |
| NRHP reference No. | 06001069 |
| Added to NRHP | November 21, 2006 |
Sheboygan Light, Power and Railway Company Car #26 is a special old electric train car. It was built in 1908 and is made of wood. This car used to carry people between Sheboygan and Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. It ran for about 30 years.
Eventually, more people started using cars. This made train travel less popular. Today, Car #26 is part of the East Troy Railroad Museum. It carries visitors on their tracks in East Troy. It's like taking a trip back in time!
Contents
What Does Car #26 Look Like?
Car #26 is a wooden train car for passengers. It rides on two special parts called "trucks." Each truck has four large wheels, axles, electric motors, springs, and brakes. The wheels are 36 inches big.
The car gets its power from electric wires above the track. A long pole on the roof, called a trolley pole, touches these wires. This pole brings electricity to the motors. The car could go as fast as 45 miles per hour.
Size and Shape
The body of the car is 44 feet long. It is eight feet eight inches wide and about nine feet high. Its corners are rounded. This design helped the car move safely through busy city streets.
The outside of the car is covered with wooden panels. The roof is made of wood covered with canvas. Along the sides of the roof, there are small arched windows. These windows are made of green, milky-looking glass. This special glass is called opalescent glass.
Windows and Doors
Each side of the car has six arched windows. Above these windows are smaller green glass sections called transoms. There is also an arched door at each end of the car. The glass in the car was made by a company called Kokomo Opalescent Glass Works.
Inside the Car
Inside, each end of the car has a small area for the conductor and motorman. This is where they control the car. When the car needed to go the other way, the motorman and conductor would switch ends.
Between these areas, there are two main sections for passengers. One was a small smoking area. The other was a non-smoking area. In 1908, Car #26 had modern features. These included hot water heating and places to hold packages. It even had a small bathroom! The car could seat 44 people.
History of the Sheboygan Electric Railway
As the city of Sheboygan grew, it needed better ways for people to get around.
Early Streetcars
In 1885, a streetcar system opened in Sheboygan. It had 11 miles of track. At first, horses pulled the streetcars!
In 1889, a company called Sheboygan Electric Light Company started providing electricity. In 1893, this company took over the streetcar system. The horse-drawn cars were not making money. The company changed its name to Sheboygan Light, Power & Railway Company. They replaced the horses with electric-powered cars.
Expanding the Service
The electric cars ran for 19 hours a day. To earn more money, the system also carried goods. They moved freight for companies like Kohler Co., local cheese factories, and stone quarries.
Over time, the rail system added more tracks. By 1908, the train line reached all the way to Elkhart Lake. In that same year, the Sheboygan rail system bought three new cars. These were cars #25, #26, and #27. They bought them from the Cincinnati Car Company.
Decline of Rail Travel
Sheboygan's electric rail system kept running into the 1930s. But fewer people were riding the trains. This started happening in the early 1920s. More and more people were using cars and buses.
To try and save the rail system, Sheboygan expanded its freight service in 1930. They worked with other railroads to carry goods to and from Chicago. This service was sometimes called the "bathtub special." This was because Kohler Co., which makes plumbing supplies, was a main customer.
Train service within Sheboygan ended in 1935. The very last trip to Plymouth was in 1938.
Car #26's New Life
As the train business slowed down, Car #26 was sold in 1937. Mr. and Mrs. John B. Huenink bought it for $250. They moved it to some land near Lake Michigan. There, it became their summer cottage!
In 1947, Berend and Jeannette Doedens bought the car. They also used it as a cottage. By 1988, the car was getting old and falling apart. Paul Doedens, a family member, gave it to the Friends of the East Troy Electric Railroad Museum.
The museum worked hard to restore Car #26. They made it look almost new again. They even replaced missing parts like the trucks. In 2006, the car was added to the National Register of Historic Places. This means it is an important historical item.
Today, the museum sometimes operates Car #26. It carries visitors on a 7.5-mile part of an old electric train line.
