Omaha daily bee., 1917-01-07
CHAOS WAS KING OF
STREET RAILWAY
Horse Railway and Gable
Tramway Compete Along
81 Miles of Track.
TRANSFERS TABooED THEN
By A. r. GRoH.

Omaha's street railway condition:
were chaotic in 1889, when the mcr
ger. which is now being discussed, was
made
The horse railway was operating
twenty-five miles, the cable tramway
was operating six miles OF double
track and the Omaha Motor Rail.
way company was constructing ten
miles Of electric line. People had to
pay two fares ii they Travelled on the
lines OF two companies.
The cable lines in Omaha were be-
gun in response 10 popular demand in
1884. One line, ran from Tenth and
Mason streets, north to Dodge, west
10 Twentieth and north to Lake. The
other ran from Tenth and Mason
streets, north to Harvey. west to
Twentieth, north to Dodge and west
10 Twenty-sixth.
Each line required an endless cable.
FIVE miles long, weighing forty-fve
tons and which wore out in ninety
days. The necessity for constructing
a concrete conduit between the tracks
for the cable to run in brought the
cost of building the line to over $780,
900 a mile.
The cable tracks ran parallel to the
horse car tracks on Tenth street from
Mason to Farnam and on Twentieth
street from Cass to Cunning street.
Old Red Line.
By 1889 the horse car company had
extended its lines considerable also.
The Red line started at Fifteenth and
Farnam streets, TO Capitol avenue, to
Eighteenth, TO Cass. to Twentieth, to
Cunning. to Bwenty-fourth, to Seward,
to Twenty-sixth, to Lake street.
The Park line ran from Fifteenth
and Farnam streets. to Howard, to
Sixteenth. to Leavenworth, to TWEEN
tysninth, to Poppleton. Another line
ran from Fifteenth and Farnam
streets to Howard, to St. Mary's ave-
nur, to Twenty-seyenth, to Leavcn-
worth, to Park avenue, to Woolworth.
The Farnam line started at Tenth
and Mason and ran to Farnam, to
Tsyenty-sixth, and several years later
tolFortieth street.
AT Fifteenth and Farnam streets
was turntable and also transfer
station. A "hill horse" was used TO
help pull the cars up the hill from
Fifteenth to Eighteenth on Farnam;
oas was !. used 4; also on the St. Mays
ITEUuc l1il.
The horse and cable companies
wtre consolidated in 1889 and later
bctght out the Mercer" company,
which was constructing electric lines.
First Electric Gar.
The first electric car came into
Omaha over the new bridge OF the
Omaha and Council Bluffs Railway
and Bridge company, in the winter
ofIl8S8 It made the same loop as the
Council Bluffs cars do now.
The first Omaha trolley line started
inlthe summer of 1889. II ran from
fourteenth and Howard streets
north to Cass, to Seventeenth, to
Burt. TO Twenty-second, to Charles
tol Twenty-fifth, to Franklin. An
other ran from Eleventh and Mason
strects, north on Eleventh to How
ard. TO Fourteenth, to Cass, to Sew
enfeenth. to Burt, to Forticth street.
The Sherman avenue line started al
Twcnty-third and Sherman avenue
and followed the same route to -Four.
tccnth and Howard streets. as il does
today. Later it was built to South
Omaha over the same route that Il
follows today.
Some men are still working on the
Omaha cars who were drivers ON the
old horse cars. Among these are
Bert F. Boone. Barney Schiltz and
George Spencer on the Park line and
u s. Doty on the South Omaha line
and Calvin p. Elkins, now on the
pension list. General Manager Smith
and Superintendent OF Transportation
Musgravc were also horse car drivers.
Mike" Clark, now sheriff, and
.Sherm" Clayton, one OF his dep
uties, also date" from those days,
They worked on the first electric
cars, while some horse lines were
still in operation.