It is an interesting fact that trolley historians all seemed to be in the North. We see histories of every little line in New England, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and other areas near New York. It was in New York that the Electric Railroaders Association was formed in the 1930's. There was also a large following in the Chicago area where the Central Electric Railfans Association was formed in the 1930's. There was also a lot of activity on the west coast. But there was almost no activity south of the Mason-Dixon Line. And yet, there were trolley properties of great interest. One such was Birmingham. Here cars ran until 1953, and these cars were retreads from all over the country. Plus there were PCC's and Birneys. Here is my collection of photos of this system. It might be noticed that the majority were shot at one time by one individual. Otto Goessl was a teenager from New Orleans, who ventured east almost a half century ago. A couple of the other photos were taken by a pair of teenagers who went down from Milwaukee the year before. I would like to know a lot more about this system, and hope someone can do more research.

We have had recent additional photos and information courtesty of Bill Volkmer and Cliff Scholes. You will now find this included within the original structure of this report.

In 1884, service began with horse service as the Birmingham Street Ry. Electric service began in 1890 as Birmingham Railway & Electric Co and it became the Birmingham Ry Light & Power Co.

Cars 2 thru 20, even only, were built by Wason in 1912 for the Tidewater RR which became the Birmingham, Ensley & Bessemer, which became the Birmingham-Tidewater RR. The company was merged with BRyL&PCo in 1917 and into Birmingham Electric Co. in 1924. The cars kept the same numbers but were painted into the yellow with brown trim scheme of BECo. Shortly after they were built, the door arrangement was changed. Originally, the side door was twice as wide, and there was a small door in the front dash which allowed the motorman to enter the car without passing through the passenger compartment. During the 1930s, they were retired piecemeal, and all were gone by 1938.

Cars 22 thru 30, even only, were built by Perley A. Thomas in 1913 for the BE&B. They came with the door arrangement shown since they were built about the time that the previous series of cars were rebuilt. They were also somewhat lighter. They remained in use until 1938, when 22, 24, and 30 were burned for scrap on June 14, 1938. 26 and 28 were given a reprieve by the war and were retired on the arrival of the PCCs. They were scrapped on March 26, 1948.

Cars 32 thru 50, even only, were the last of the BE&B cars and were delivered by Brill in 1913. They were almost identical to the 22 thru 30. On May 31, 1922, car 34 was destroyed in a collistion with a Seaboard train at 5^th Avenue South at 52^nd Street. Several people were killed. On June 14, 1938, cars 36, 38, 42, 46, and 48 were retired and scrapped. The others remained in service during the war and until retired when the PCCs arrived. They were retired on August 31, 1947, and sold for scrap on March 26, 1948.

In 1919, Tennessee Coal, Iron & Railroad, part of U. S. Steel, built a 4 mile long line from the end of the Fairfield line to Westfield. They purchased 6 cars from Perley A. Thomas. In 1930 the line was acquired by BECo. Since the cars were similar to the so-called Tidewater cars, they were numbered 51 thru 56. 52, 54, 55, and 56 were sold for scrap on March 26, 1948. 51 and 53 were sold for scrap on April 28, 1948.

Cars 200 thru 220 were built by St. Louis Car in 1902 with convertible vestibules. These were made permanently closed in 1920. The sides were also steel sheathed over the original wood sides. 211 and 216 were scrapped in 1939. In August, 1944, 200, 201, 202, 203, 205, 206, and 208 were scrapped for the war effort. 207, 210, 215, 218 and 219 were scrapped in 1948. 212 was the last remaining car in 1951.

Cars 221 thru 230 were built by St. Louis Car in 1905 and were almost identical except that they were six feet longer. Their history was parallel with the shorter cars. In 1942, cars 221, 223, 225, and 227 were retired to serve as parts resources for the other cars. They were scrapped by 1946. 224, 226, 228, 229, and 230 were sold for scrap on March 29, 1948. 222 followed soon after on April 28, 1948.

Cars 280 thru 289 were purchased in 1923 from the Columbia (SC) Railway, Gas & Electric Co. They were built by St. Louis Car in 1917. The original numbers were 93 thru 99 and 117 thru 119. They ran on several lines for many years. 286 and 288 were scrapped in August, 1944. 282 and 284 were retired for parts about the same time. 280 and 283 went to scrap on March 29, 1948. The remainder were retired in late 1950 and scrapped over the next two years.

Cars 300 thru 309 were built by Wason Car Co as Springfield (Mass.) Street Ry. 544 thru 553. They were purchased by BECo in November, 1941, after the Springfield service as discontinued in June 1940 and were shipped to Perley A. Thomas Car who reworked them from the ground up. They were built into single end center door cars which were so popular in Birmingham since it allowed for segregation more efficiently. One unusual feature was the left side doors which allowed passengers to board and alight from the side away from the railroad tracks which paralleled the #6 Pratt-Ensley line. They were given the new paint scheme early in 1950, but they were retired in 1951 when Pratt-Ensley was abandoned. After storage, they were scrapped between 1951 and 1953.

Cars 343 thru 351 were rebuilt in late 1923 from trailers in the 600 series, which had been built in the company shops in 1911. The trucks were change and a platform with controls was installed at one end. 345 and 352 were scrapped prior to 1944. In August, 1944, 346, 347, 348, and 350 were scrapped. Earlier, 343, 344, and 351 were converted to locker rooms for women employes. The windows were painted over and the seats removed. Otherwise they were complete. They were scrapped on March 29, 1948.

Cars 400 thru 412 and 414 thru 420 were built by Stephenson in 1900 for the Metropolitan RR of Washington, DC where they were part of an order for 40 cars numbered 700-739. Roy King advises that they were sold by the Metropolitan because the Senate District committee which ran the city until Lyndon's time literally forced them to. The influential people who lived on the Georgetown-Lincoln Park line complained bitterly of the noise they made when compared to what they replaced. He has Senate documentation of this. So in 1901 they arrived in Birmingham as the 400-420 less the 413. About 1910 they were rebuilt from a 5 window end to a 3 window end with wire gates. Later the platforms were closed in. Car 412 was wrecked in 1924. On March 1, 1935, cars 404, 407, 409, 411, 414, 416, 417, 419, and 420 were scrapped. 401 was burned in 1939. Cars 400, 402, 403, 405, 406, 408, 410, 415, and 418 were burned in 1940.

Cars 400 thru 418 were built by St. Louis Car Co. in 1927 as double truck Birneys 416 thru 435 for Houston Electric Co. where they ran until 1940. In 1941, BECo purchased the cars and had them sent back to St. Louis for rebuilding as single end, center entrance cars. They replaced the 280 series of cars on the Edgewood Line after a big ceremony on September 28, 1941. During the war, car 416 was wrecked and scrapped. 410 and 415 were sold for scrap on December 12, 1948. The remainder followed over the next several years.

Cars 419 thru 441 were built by Kuhlman Car Co in 1917 as part of an order for 60 Peter Witts for the Community Traction Co. of Toledo, OH. As Toledo converted their lines, 23 cars became surplus in 1942 and were purchased by BECo. The cars acquired were 806, 809, 810, 813, 816, 817, 818, 820, 821, 822, 824, 832, 833, 836, 841, 844, 847, 848, 851, 852, 853, 855, and 856. There is no record of how the cars were renumberd. The cross-seats and controller in the rear were replaced with transverse seating which allowed greater capacity. 437 was wrecked in 1944 and became a parts supply until it was scrapped in 1946. The last of these cars operated on August 30, 1947, and were sold for scrap as a group on March 29, 1948. The body of 419 was used as a shed for some years.

Cars 501 thru 520 were built by Cincinnati Car in May, 1924. These were the first center door local cars and were built as lightweight cars without the curve side which Cincinnati featured at that time for their lightweights. The "center" door was placed about 2/3^rd of the way to the back since this was the dividing line for segregation. The cars were large enough that they normally seated 40 in the white section and 22 in the rear part of the car. This could be changed by the movement of some stanchions and railings. In the late 1930s, the front platformw was lengthened an addional 29 inches to allow for double doors at the front and one man operation. The first cars became surplus after the PCCs arrived. 507, 508, 509, and 516 were sold for scrap on March 29, 1948. 506, 510, 512, 513, 514, 515, 518, and 519 were sold for scrap a month later on April 28, 1948. The remainder were scrapped over a period of time thru 1951.

Cars 521 thru 530 began as an order of 10 cars built by St. Louis Car in 1929 for the Lorain Street Ry. where they were 200 thru 209. In 1938, Lorain ended rail service, and the cars were purchased in 1939 and sent back to St. Louis for rebuilding. They retained their basic appearance except for seats, marker lights, and horns which were replaced with whistles. They became surplus in Birmingham in 1947 with the arrival of trackless trolleys and were scrapped over the next several years.

551 thru 566 were the last new cars purchased by BECo before the PCCs. They arrived from Cincinnati Car in December, 1926. They were similar to the 501 thru 520 except they were built as one man cars and were more posh. The seats were green plush and spaced farther apart. The shades were silk. The finish was cherry wood. Stanchions were brushed aluminum. The exteriors were given a special blue and cream color. But this did not stop vandalizing and it was not long before the seats were replaced with regular wood seating. The color scheme was changed to the standard color scheme at the first repainting. They became the last standard cars operated after the PCCs arrived in 1947. 556 made the last non PCC run on July 14, 1952. They were all scrapped later that year and early in 1953.

570 thru 584 came from the Eastern Massachusetts Street Ry. in 1937. In 1927 they had purchased 50 cars, which were identical except for the seating, from two builders. Cars 7001 thru 7025 came from Osgood-Bradley, and 7026-7050 came from Wason. The cars which BECo got were 7006, 7007, 7008, 7015, 7017, 7018, 7019, 7020, 7029, 7030, 7037, 7038, 7044, 7045, 7050. These were sent to Perley Thomas for rebuilding. The cars had the usual double end configuration with end doors on the platforms. As rebuilt they were single end, center door cars. The seating and other items were upgraded and modernized. They began going into service in May, 1938. They began to be replaced in 1947 with PCCs and trolley coaches. On December 4, 1948, cars 574, 575, 577, 579, and 581 were sold for scrap. The other followed over the next 3 years.

585 thru 596 were built in 1926 by Kuhlman Car for the Wheeling Public Service where they were 101 thru 112. Service there was substituted on August 1, 1937, and the cars were purchased by BECo. They were sent to Perley Thomas for rebuilding into single end center door cars and were put into service in May, 1938. They were retired by 1947 and sold for scrap on April 28, 1948.

754 was built in the company shops in 1912. It shows up in the background of PCC 818 which was photographed at the time of delivery.

First 800 thru 840 were Birneys purchased in two groups under the same order number from Cincinnati Car Co. 800 thru 820 came in 1919 and 821 thru 840 came in 1920. They were double end, single pole cars and were never very popular. By 1921, cars 801 thru 809, 811, and 815 thru 818 were converted to single end. They all served until the depression of the 1930s caused cut backs on the lighter lines. Many of the cars were gradually set aside. On August 24, 1937, cars 819 thru 829 were scrapped. Shortly afterwards, on January 20, 1938, cars 802, 804, 805, 809, 810, 813, and 814 were scrapped. Then, in August, 1941, cars 812, 816, 817, 830 thru 833, 835, and 838 were scrapped. A number of these car bodies were saved for non rail use, such as sheds and cabins. With the advent of WWII, no more cars were scrapped. 803, 811, and 815 wer converted to locker rooms for women employes. In 1944, 801, 806, 807, 808, 818, and 836 were scrapped. At the end of the war, there were five cars left, two in service and three as locker rooms. 803 was scrapped in 1947. When the PCCs were assigned 800 series number, the remaining four cars were renumbered by adding 2000 to their number. In 1948, the locker rooms were no longer needed, and 2811 went to scrap on March 29. 2815 went to scrap on April 28, 1948. The two remaining cars were used on the Wooward shuttle line. In 1948, 2834 was given the new paint scheme. 2837 was the standby. The Woodward line was discontinued in November, 1950, and missed being the last Birney line by a few months since Fort Collins, CO, outlasted it. 2834 was scrapped in March, 1951, and 2837 lasted until August.

On October 23, 1975, SEPTA, in Philadelphia, lost the Woodland Car House to fire. This left them with a shortage of cars, and they turned to Toronto for replacements. They purchased a number of the former Birmingham cars, but only activated 19 of them. Bill Volkmer gives us a list of the renumbering. The first number is the Birmingham number. The second is the Toronto number, and the third is the Philadelphia number. 806-4706-2300, 807-4707-2301, 809-4709-2302, 810-4710-2303, 811-4711-2304, 818-4718-2305, 824-4724-2306, 826-4726-2307, 827-4727-2308, 828-4728-2309, 829-4729-2310, 830-4730-2311, 831-4731-2312, 832-4732-2313, 834-4734-2314, 840-4740-2315, 841-4741-2316, 844-4744-2317, and 846-4746-2318. They were not liked in Philadelphia and had a very short life when the last of the lines they served were abandoned by 1981.

801 became TTC 4701.

802 became TTC 4702.

803 became TTC 4703.

804 became TTC 4704.

805 became TTC 4705.

806 became TTC 4706 and then SEPTA 2300.

807 became TTC 4707 and then SEPTA 2301.

808 became TTC 4708.

809 became TTC 4709 and then SEPTA 2302.

810 became TTC 4710 and then SEPTA 2303.

811 became TTC 4711 and then SEPTA 2304.

812 became TTC 4712.

813 became TTC 4713.

814 became TTC 4714.

815 became TTC 4715.

816 became TTC 4716.

817 became TTC 4717.

818 became TTC 4718 and then SEPTA 2305.

819 became TTC 4719.

820 became TTC 4720.

821 became TTC 4721.

822 became TTC 4722.

823 became TTC 4723.

824 became TTC 4724 and then SEPTA 2306.

825 became TTC 4725.

826 became TTC 4726 and then SEPTA 2307.

827 became TTC 4727 and then SEPTA 2308.

828 became TTC 4728 and then SEPTA 2309.

829 became TTC 4729 and then SEPTA 2310.

830 became TTC 4730 and then SEPTA 2311.

831 became TTC 4731 and then SEPTA 2312.

832 became TTC 4732 and then SEPTA 2313.

833 became TTC 4733.

835 became TTC 4735.

836 became TTC 4736.

837 became TTC 4737.

838 became TTC 4738.

839 became TTC 4739.

840 became TTC 4740 and then SEPTA 2315.

842 became TTC 4742.

843 became TTC 4743.

844 became TTC 4744 and later SEPTA 2317.

845 became TTC 4745.

846 became TTC 4746 and later SEPTA 2318.

847 became TTC 4747.

848 became TTC 4748.

100 thru 247 were trackless trolleys. They came on the scene at about the same time as the PCCs. Early in 1947, coaches 100 thru 184 were delivered by Pullman-Standard. 185 thru 247 were delivered in 1956. Actual operation did not begin until April 30, 1947. After this, many of the rail abandonments were converted to trolley coach. The last rail line went on April 19, 1953, with conversion to trackless trolleys, and a bus line was converted in 1956. But then the abandonments began, and the last electric coach ran on November 15, 1958. British Columbia Electric purhased 102, 108 thru 110, 114 thru 118, 120, 122 thru 133, and 137 thru 139 in 1956. Mexico City purchased in 116 thru 193, 195 thru 211, 215 thru 225, 227 thru 237, 239, and 241 thru 247 also in 1956.. The others were sold for non transit purposes, such as sheds, cabins, etc. Thus ended electric transport in Birmingham.

2102 was built in the company shops in 1923 as a crane car. It was rebuilt as a weed sprayer.

The 2109 was built in 1923 by Differential Steel Car as 109.

This little rail grinder was built in the company shops, probably from car parts, in 1928. It was renumbered from 123 and scrapped in 1953.

3752 was built in the company shops as 752, an express motor, in approximate 1905. It was rebuilt as a line car as 3752.

AMDG

4/30/2004

Memorial of Saint James of Numidia

Choose Life

The God of glory thunders.

In His temple they all cry "Glory".

Psalm 29:9