Friday, December 03, 2010













I spotted this photo at My link page Dave's Electric Railroads to the right of Your computer screen. www.davesrailpix.com

Team Work, is just what this photo describes in regards to early onboard operating practices by transit companies during the electric streetcar era.

Chicago began operating their first electric powered city streetcars in 1896. For the first several years in citties like Chicago, Los Angeles, Detroit, Boston and many other places in the nation, the two man standard of a Motorman and a Conductor, was the common system used by transit companies. Until the eventual and very economic "One Man" cars came along during the late Teens and early 1920's, the two man onboard crew was the thing.

Although the Chicago Surface Lines Company also owned one man cars, the standard two man team of an onboard Motorman and Conductor, continued on some lines after the Chicago Transit Authority purchased the CSL in 1947, and operated on some routes like this until Chicago's electric streetcar lines were all eventually phased out during the 1950's.

This photo shows the standard two man team of a motorman and conductor, at Chicago's Navy Pier CSL terminal taken during possibly the 1930's or 40's era.

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