Shore Line Trolley Museum facts for kids
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| Location | 17 River Street East Haven, Connecticut |
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| Type | Trolley History |
The Shore Line Trolley Museum is a special place in East Haven, Connecticut. It's a museum all about trolleys! It started in 1945 and is the oldest trolley museum in the United States that has been open continuously.
At the museum, you can learn about trolley history. You can also ride on old, restored trolleys along a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) track. This track is called the Branford Electric Railway. Besides trolleys, the museum also has restored subway cars. They even have a few trolleybuses and regular buses. The museum area is so important that it's listed as the Branford Electric Railway Historic District. It was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Contents
History of the Trolley Museum
How the Museum Started
The museum began in August 1945. It was called the Branford Electric Railway Association (BERA). This group was a non-profit organization focused on history and education.
At that time, the Connecticut Company (ConnCo) ran most of the streetcar lines in Connecticut. Since the early 1930s, ConnCo had planned to close its "F" trolley route. By April 1946, the line only went to Short Beach. This was its original starting point when it opened on July 31, 1900.
The very last trolley car run by ConnCo left Short Beach just after midnight on March 8, 1947. Right after that, BERA took over the last 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of the line. This part of the track was on private land between East Haven and Short Beach.
Over the next year, the museum moved almost all its collection to its new property. This included many streetcars that ConnCo had just retired. They used the existing electric track connection with the Connecticut Company to move them.
Growing the Collection
In 1948, ConnCo cut the track connection. BERA was then on its own. The 1.5-mile (2.4 km) line was originally a double track. But one of the tracks was taken up and sold for scrap metal. This helped the museum raise money.
Later, the museum issued 20-year bonds, and things got better. In 1957, a new visitor's center was built. It was made of brick at the East Haven end of the line. This building was named Sprague Station, after a trolley pioneer named Frank Julian Sprague. Funds donated by his widow helped build it.
Over the years, BERA's collection has grown a lot. It is now the third largest collection of electric railway equipment in North America. The museum focuses on equipment from Connecticut and New York City. It runs many different streetcars, subway cars, and work cars all year. The Shore Line Trolley Museum is mostly run by volunteers. They also repair and restore old equipment at the museum.
Dealing with Natural Disasters
In August 2011, Hurricane Irene caused the worst flooding in the museum's history. Water was up to 2 feet (0.61 m) deep across the grounds. Almost 90 streetcars were damaged. The damaged part of the streetcar line was fixed and reopened in May 2012. Repairs on the streetcars continued for a long time after that.
Trolleybuses at the Museum
The museum also has a few "trackless trolleys" (which are trolley buses) and motor buses. These are buses powered by diesel or gasoline. In the fall of 2008, construction started on a short trolley bus line. This line was built so the museum's trolley buses could operate.
The line is a loop about 750 feet (230 m) long. It also has a branch that goes into the maintenance and storage building. The first part of the line was tested in April 2009. A 1947 ACF-Brill trolley bus, number 205, was used for the test. The museum got this bus from the Philadelphia trolley bus system in 1981.
Construction of the line was about 70% finished by mid-2011. However, it was stopped when Hurricane Irene caused flooding. The museum had to focus on other repairs first. Construction later started again, and the trolley bus line was finished in 2017. Regular operation, which was planned to happen about once a month, had not yet started as of 2023. The vehicles still needed more work, like painting, before they were ready for public rides.
The Shore Line Museum also owns two other trolley buses. One is ex-Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (from the Boston area) 4037. This is a 1976 Flyer E800 model. The museum got it in 2009, and it could operate at the museum back then. As of 2023, it is not running, but it is expected to be fixed eventually. The other trolley bus is ex-Philadelphia 210. It is the same as No. 205 and was acquired at the same time. It is currently used only for parts to help fix other buses.
Highlights of the Collection
The museum has many unique and historic vehicles. Here are some of the most interesting ones:
- Horsecar 76: This is believed to be the oldest preserved horse-drawn tram in the world.
- New Orleans St. Charles Avenue Street car 850: This is one of the last three 800-series cars still existing. It was built in 1922 by Perley Thomas.
- Connecticut Company 500: This was a very fancy business or parlor car used by ConnCo.
- Manhattan Railway "G": This is the oldest preserved rapid transit car in the United States. It was built in 1878.
- Interborough Rapid Transit 3344 "Mineola": This was the personal private car of August Belmont, Jr.. He was the president of the IRT, which ran New York's first subway.
- Ansonia Derby & Birmingham "Derby": This is the oldest surviving electric locomotive. It is also the only Van De Poele motor that has been preserved.
- Brooklyn and Queens Transit 1001: This was the very first production PCC streetcar ever built.
- Third Avenue Railway System 220: This is the oldest operating streetcar in the United States. It was built in 1892.
- Hudson and Manhattan 503: This is the only restored H&M "black car."
- PATH PA3 745: This car survived the collapse of the World Trade Center on 9/11.
- NYCTA R17 6688: This car was used in the filming of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie.
- IND R9 1689: This was one of the original R1-9 subway cars used by the Independent Subway System.
See also
