The Savannah morning news., 1902-07-20
MULE To TROLLEY
>.xN4u,s STREET RAILWAYS
rHIRTY YEARS AGO AND NOW.
WERE NONE BEFORE THE WAR.
N,vANNAH, sEABOARD AND SKIDA-
WAY THE FIRST.

WARE Told to Keep the Change.
.coIored People, Except Nurses
with Children, Were Not Allowed
60 ride and Riot ResuIted-GrOwth
os the street Railway System From
:. small Affair to it's Present Pro-
ortions-The One Cent Fare War
petxvcen the Parsons and Collins
Lines.
The development of the street rail-
say system of Savannah, now SEEM
ing to approach an efficiency and per-
action to which it has never before
sven aspired, has been in the face of
roanv obstacles and along devious and
uncertain. ways.
Before the war there were no street
.ars in the city, but within less than
decade after the cessation of hostili-
lies a very passion for the construction
of such systems seems to have taken
possesson of the people, and every
year or two witnessed the construction
~ a new line or additions to the lines
already in existence.
The Savannah, Seaboard and Skid
away Railroad was the first street
railroad organized in the city. Its in
generators were Col. w. r. Symons
and others. 1t claimed the right to
every street and for time kept every
nther band of citizens ambitious of
public Improvement and public cash,
at bay
1t was not, however, a very extensive
system that this company operated.
The Whitaker street line was one of
its possessions and it had tracks laid
on East Broad street. from Liberty to
Bay, on Bay to West Broad and on
West Broad to the Central depot.
The Coast Line.
About 1878 the Coast Line Railroad
was organized by the late DR.. J. ].
Waring and others and attempted to
lay its tracks on Broughton street. A
protest from the Savannah, Seaboard
and Skidaway Railroad Immediately
went up and an injunction was Sc
cured from the courts to prevent the
construction of the line. However, the
Injunction was dissolved and the
Broughton street line, extending out
Habersham street and then to Thun-
derbot, was built
In 1878 the Barnard and Anderson
Street Railroad Company was organ
lied and in short time, under the
leadership and direction of Col ]. H.
Estlll began the construction of it's
lines. 1t built on Barnard from the
market to Liberty street, on Liberty to
Iaunall, on Tattnan to Berrien, on
Berren to West Broad and
thence to Laurel Grove Cemetery.
Afterwards the Liberty street
line was constructed by this
company and the West Broad street
line was extended out on the Ogeechee
road to Battery Park.
The Abereorn Line.
Previous to this, however, the Sa-
Fannah and Wilmington Railroad Com
pahy secured charter and began the
construction of a line on Abercorn
street The work of cons sruction had
only been well started when the COM
pany was absorbed by the S. S. & S.
hallroad, and became it's Abercorn
street line.
The S. S. & S. Railroad, after be-
ing operated several years, went into
bankruptcy, and the purchasers united
win those of the Barnard and Ander-
son street Railroad. and the consol-
,qdteo lines, including those to Isle of
nope and Montgomery, became known
a. the City and Suburban Railway
Company.
me newly formed City and Suburban
n ,; Immediately an era of construc-
tIon' 1t owned the Whitaker, Aber-
corn, Barnard, West Broad and
Liberty street lines. These were
Connected and made fairly good sys-
s seil' Inc city lines were operated by
norses and the outside by steam. A
t em years more and the system passed
n ,neo [ne hands of Mr.. George Parsons,
t Wiio haa previously secured control of
tle coast Line, and he ran the systems
- oohhectlon with each other.
The big BeIt.v
IN the meantime the Savannah Street
ru Nural Resort Railway made its
ST d on the scene. 1t was re-
straet 10 IN the vernacular of the
1nIeets as the BELT Line" or the "Ri1
Selt' and it's tracks made an almost
ron!plete circuit of the city. This rail-
' -oaa was built by the Savannah In
vollnent Company. 1t ran on Bay
- eel 10 West Broad, on West Broad
BEST, on Best to Estill avenue. ON
a a~sIi avenue to Habersham, on Hab-
Esnsm to Gwinnett, on Gwinnett to
Aa T Broad and so back to Bay street
me Electric Railway Company. or
,slndlly formed to promote the deyel-
0 0'i of Collinsville and The Mead
- was next organized, largely
"teough the vigorous efforts of Mr..
~ ., collins. It's belt line ran on OgIe-
n 3,Oape avenue, West Broad, Price and
~ ny streets, and included a loop in
western section of the city that
C+iri!ouhded Robertsviile and a line to
Noiiinsville on the east.
One Cent Fares.
wi, WIN three strong systems in COM
btSlHon with each other the inevita-
Hsht for the mastery soon ensued.
d.et railway fares in Savannah
- tipped for a few weeks to a cent
AZ an the City and Suburban Railway,
G. every line was losing money
10y day. The Electric Railway Com
NY my went first to the wall and was
BED BED with the Savannah Street and
da.i dl Resort Company. The CONSOLE
foliaoA OF these two lines was soon
van"eo py another, in which the Sa-
PaiIlfan, Thunderbolt and Isle of Hope
t,~llMay. organized to build a line be-
canoI Sandhy and Thunderbolt, be-
liz the owner or lessee of all the
NJ IN the city and suburbs, with
troi,;I arsons the dominating and con-
Nnaa spirit. In such ownership the
FIeo. continued until the Savannah
yea nc company, during the current
c. ana under the leadership of Mr..
ge j. Baldwin. made a exvaerinc,