The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1911-11-02
Origin and DEVELOPMENT of
the Same Interestingly
Reviewed.

f.
electric railroading. AS far back as
1884 Thomas Davenport, Vermont
blacksmith, demonstrated that Il
was quite possible to propel vehicle
by electric power. but that was long
before the electric generator had
been perfected and, Of course. ma
yenport had to obtain his current
from batteries and they were far too
small for railway work. DAVIDSON.
In Scotland; Professor Farmer AZ
Dover; Professor Page, of the
Smithsonian Institute; Hall Of Bos-
ton-all Experimental with electric
ally propelled toy cars up to the year
1860. but they were merely demon
strating fact that had little, il any
thing to do with the later develop.
ment of the electric railway as we
know 1t today.
These pioneers were far ahead OF
their time. The practical electric
railway had to await the coming of
the electric generator and the first
electric railway in the world to re.
ceive its energy from generator,
instead of from chemical batteries,
was installed by siemens at the Ber-
lin exposition in the year 1879.
From this date the progress Of
the art was continuous and effective,
the work of Edison and Field fol-
lowing close on that of siemens. IN
1880 Edison built and operated an
electric locomotive at Menlo Park,
this being the first. Practical develop
ment OF electric railway to public
service was made by Siemens at
l.ichterfeld. in Germany, in 1881,
and during. the two years following
the commercial development seems
to have been mainly in Europe, Sic
mems installing a road at Portrush,
ireland. which was opened in 1888.
The work which led more espe-
clally to the, commercial develop
ment of the. electric railway in this
country began in 1888. An electric
locomotive was built by Field aud
Eickemeyer and exhibited at the
Chicago Railway Exposition. IL
was during this year that Van De-
poole began his experiment with
an electric car in Chicago. During
the same year Draft, who will ever
hold a prominent place, sharing
honors with Van Depoele, operated
at Saratoga an electric locomotive
hauling u passenger car.
In 1884 the sprague Electric
Railway and Motor Company was
organized byMr. sprague. Bentley
aud knight appearing during this
year and contributed to the develop
ment by operating in public service
at Cleveland, o., and electric car
taking energy from electrical con-
ductors in an underground conduit.
This was the first demonstration of
the conduit system as afterward in
stalled in New York city and Wash
ington, d, c..
In 1885 Drift built an electric To-
connective for the Ninth Avenue line
OF the Manhattan Elevated, which in
appearance and arrangement was not
unlike the electric locomotive as
built today, He also installed III
Baltimore surface road using an
electric locomotive with a third rail
as the principal conductor, but with
an overhead conductor and under
running contact at road crossings, a
combination Of electrical conductors
to meet special conditions which has
been in use since that time
During the same year Van De-
poole equipped an electric railway
at Toronto, the first road in Can
ada, which, as 1t had an overhead
trolley wire throughout it's length
with an understanding contact at
the end of trolley pole, was the
forerunner OF our modern trolley
AlSulS' III NdHsho lily, anu oAOLh
IN Denver, also began their electric
railway experiments about this
time.
sprasue, whose name has been so
prominently associated with electric
railway development, built his first
car equipment in 1885. His motor
was really tho prototype of the mod
ern single reduction railway motor.
1t was supported at one end by bear
ings on the car axle and at the other
end was fiexibly attached to the car
truck. This method OF supporting
tho motor. commonly known as nose
suspension. is now almost in uniyer-
sal use. A demonstration of this
equipment was given by sprague al
the Durant sugar refinery. it
,-t.t.,- nrd q mara tmn0rtnnt