Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-15
The Evolution j Local Acoommoda-
tons for Travel.
TIE HACK AND TEE BUS SUPERSEDED
Drivers Who Made Race Course of
the Streets
THE PRESENT FACILITIES

itdHtS recently.
when in few months the work on our
street and suburban railway systems shall
have been equipped with the most modern
| effective appliances. the capital of the ma
| ton will have the most perfect system in
| the world, surprising that on the Pacific
slope, in San Francisco, and 1t is needless
| to say, judging from what has been done
| IN this direction in recent years, while the
| installation Is permitted in many other
| places of equally as good systems we will
| never permit any community to surpa So us
| in the matter of affording the best CHEAP
but effective, passenger transportation for
| the populace.
with the several roads fully eouipned.
the horse car, after more than a third of a
century of service ip furnishing facilities
for travel, may be relega ted to the past as
ehectually as that vehicle in 1862 knocked
out the old-time omnibus. which had, in
the latter part Of the 30s superseded the
old-time stage. And yet there are numbers
of old WashiagtoniaEs living who can not
only recall the trip Of the first car from the
west gate of the Capitol to the front of the
State Department, 18th and G streets but
their adventures when stealing a ride on
the buses of old, often receiving cut
from the drivers whip when discovered;
and some few there are who drove the
buses, and. as boys, had been served by
the stage drivers as they were wont to
serve the boys of their day.
"As may be supposed, much of the his
tory OF the past. as regards the old local
transportation lines. has not vet beer buried
in oblivion, though much of 1t comes to us
only by tradition. 1t goes without saying
that the old men and women when recall
ing the primitive methods of the past al
ways interest their juniors, and on the
street cars of today old-timer may al
ways have an audience when he falls into
d reminiscent mood.
Says one of the old-timers: Tt is i'm
possible to fix the date when regular routes
for passenger transportation were estab-
lished in the District. 1t can no more be
determined than the date of the invention
Of the watch. Like Topsy, the system has
grow n; when there was a demand facilities
were provided for travel. and as the pop-
ulation has grown the ways and means to
accommodate the public have multiplied,
and now we have splendid facilities at
nominal cost.
:" There is an old physician says the
oid-timer, who contends that we have so
much facility for travelling that we should
be careful not to let it deprive us of exer-
else, and he is fearful that unless outdoor
sports supply the exercise we will soon see
the effect on the physical condition of the
community. Fifty years ago it was no I'M
common thing" says the doctor, for per
sons to walk two or three miles and back
in making an evening call. Now a half
mile is deemed soo far to walk
Hackney Carriages.
THE hackney carriage or hack contin-
ued the oidstlmers was the first vehicle
for city passengers sArvice in the District,
and there is but little doubt that some of
the first routes inathe city were established
by the first Jehus of the capital. The name
OF this yehicle--in general description the
same as that of today, only 1t was then
hung to high C-springs by leather straps,
and sort of ladder or steps folding on the
inside. enabling the passengers to reach or
leave the body-was supposed by some peo-
pie for MANY years to have come from
Peter Hackney, a leading coach builder in
the last century Others ascribed it to the
village of Hackney, suburb of London,
but most likely the French word for hired
horse gave tha name.
me public hack appeared in the District
by the time the government moved here
ana the hackmen were recognized by the
m0nicfpai authorities soon after we had a
mayor and councils, through an act of 1902
by prescribing rates of fare. The points
were the Capitol and Presidents House, as
the initials Indicated and the rate of fare
between the former and the Eastern
branch. Navy Yard. south end of New ,Jer-
sey avenue. or Greenleafs Point, and be-
tween the Presidents House and Hamburg
wharf, western limits of the city or Green
leafs Point, was - cents per passenger 1t
Is fair to presume, in the absence of law
as to stands, that the points named were
regarded as stands.
There is tradition that the hackmen of
Inc early years of the century, before the
war of 1912, to some extent had regular
passenger routes; that it was the custom
VI tilOsst III the east enu TO run their
hicles at stated times between the Navy
Yard and the Capitol, and those in the CEN
trail part of the city between the Capitol
and the Presidents grounds, and others
from the latter point to the Georgetown
bridge. The charge was half the usual
fare, 12k cents, and the rule was that I'M
less there were two or more passengers the
trip was annulled. Thus were the first
routes established.
Early in the 2Os what was known as the
Indian Queen Hotel, now the Metropolitan,
was regarded as the hub of the city, and
the principal hack stand was located here,
while others We're at the Presidents house
ana the Capitol In addition there were
several other locations regarded stand by
the citizens-the usual watering and feed
ing places, pump near a grocery and feed
store being all that was required. What
was known in the 30s as Brereton's. north
west corner of 18th and r streets, was such
q location. Bill Wormley, Jim Cole, ALT
Gray and Mace Adams we'll known colored
hackmen, located there. The triangular
space on the avenue east of 14th street was
another stand.
cessity OF establishing regular hack stands,
and the following were selected: South of
PENNSYLVANIA avenue at Az. 9th. 18th and
14th streets; 18th street east U. S. Bank
now Riggs; G, west of 18th; front of
Bank of Washington and between Fuller's
stables &c and 14th streets) and Pennsyl-
vania avenue.
Avenue Macadamized.
The avenue having been macadamiZed in
the 3Os between 10th street and the Capt.
tol. and graded and graveled from the lat
ter point to the NaxysY4rd. conditions were
somewhat improyeB kTth the old shortcut.
the wandering road the hills and dales
from the Capitol testhe Navy Yard. was, to
great extent, abSndoned for that on the
avenue and sth s9eet.s While travel had
been made more SSsx 'the dust and mud
were not abatedk sIndeed. the former
seemed. with the ifcrease of travel. to be-
come more plentifuEH
In this (the thirdsdecade) there were sew
eral who put vehicles on the avenue other
than the hacks foEsthe accommodation Of
the public. AzariaK Fuller, Cookendorfer,
end other owners ef Stage lines to Balti-
more, it is said, nq6 and then. occasion
required, put stages on the Georgetown
line, an influx of strangers usually calling
Tor them. In the direction of a permanent
line an attempt was made about 1880 by
Robt. and Henry McDtiell. whose stables
We're on l street between I'D and 23d
streets. z-
They had two or three old-time stages
on the line between eth street and George
town. Mr.. John Bridget was another can
dictate for public favor in the same 6irec-
ton. and from time to time others APP
peared. These were mostly run in an ir-