A Short History
From 1887 to 1948, transportation in the City of Phoenix Arizona was provided by the Phoenix Street Railway System. The System founded by General Moses Hazeltine Sherman, utilizing horse cars was converted to electrical power in 1893 and was, in large measure, responsible for the pattern of real estate and other development in the early days of the City. The City of Phoenix acquired the street railway in 1925 and, as the result of a successful bond issue, completely rebuilt the System and purchased 18 modern Streetcars. The Streetcars were very popular with the public and remained in operation until 1948 when they were replaced by buses.
Map, Lines of the Phoenix Street Railway
as drawn by Marc Pearsall, 2002
The Phoenix Street Railway was an essential part of a long since vanished Phoenix. Streetcars had their shortcomings for they were noisy, hot in summer and cold in winter, sometimes had flat wheels and the ride could be rough. They did however run every 10 minutes, go everywhere worth going in their day for only 5 cents. The Motto was “Ride a Mile and Smile the While.”
The Arizona Street Railway Museum, Home of the Phoenix Trolley, is located next to Margaret Hance Deck Park above Interstate 10, and is being enhanced as an operating museum which will allow visitors to step back in time and experience some early Phoenix history. It will give children a chance to experience a ride that even “Virtual Reality” can’t duplicate.
Selected Reading
- Ride a Mile and Smile the While A history of the Phoenix Street Railway 1887-1948, by Lawrence J. Fleming. Swaine Publications, Phoenix, 1977
- “Clang, Clang, Clang Went the Trolley” in Arizona Highways magazine, June 1986, pp. 38-43.