The globe-independent. (Hagerstown, Md.) 1943-19??, 1952-09-11

trolley" And it was loaded. The
time will soon be here that there will
be little remembrance of the trolley,
even its last trip. l was really sur
prised when l asked a number of
people who lived in or near Hagers-
town all their lives, and rode the
trolleys, just where the trolleys ran
in Hagerstown. They didn't know!
and more than one asked me to tell
them if 1 was able to find out.
In my last column told that there
was at one time plans to run the troll
ley to many of the outlying sections,
and some of the then important in
dustrial sections of Hagerstown. One
especially was the plan to run troll
leys up onto the "hill,'' crowned by
the Moller Organ Works. No one
that l contacted could remember of
its ever going there, so that plan
must have failed. Another plan that
could find no evidence of, was for
double tracks on the busiest streets.
No one knows of any double tracks
in Hagerstown, except for the places
where trolleys passed each other.
Well, just where did they go? OF
course, we all remember the tracks
on West Washington Street, the first
block, and the turn at the Court
House. How often we watched to see
if the trolley was going to take the
fender of an automobile along or not,
as it made that turn. But did it ever
go farther west on Washington
Street than Summit Avenue?
1 am told that the trolley once
went on up the hill, across the rail
roads, and as far out as Wayside Az
enue. It is reported too, that there
were once plans to extend the line
to Clear Spring, and that track was
laid for at least one stretch along
old Route 40, the Western Pike"
This was abandoned before construc-
ton had gone very far.
Now l would like to simply name
the streets on which the trolley once
ran, most of them for only part of
their length. The streets once bless
ed by the presence Of the trolleys
include: West Washington Street,
Summit Avenue, Wilson Blvd, Vir-
GINA Avenue, North Potomac Street,
Potomac Avenue, Hamilton Blvd,
the Paramount-Reid Road, Fair
ground Avenue, Mulberry Street,
Antietam Street, South Potomac
Street, First Street, Pope Avenue,
and Frederick Street.
The most recent line to go was, of
course, the West Washington Street,
Summit Avenue, Virginia Avenue
and the extension to Williamsport.
One of the most famous, one that
played big part in the development
of the areas between Hagerstown
and Frederick, was the Frederick
line. (Needless to say, I am merely
reporting what I was told and will
be glad for any correction, if any of
you know of some facts 1 do not
have.)
The Frederick line left Hagers-
town, starting down South Potomac
Street, made the bends in the second
block at the cemetery ran to where
South Potomac Street bends to go
up over the railroad track. But here
the trolley bore left and went around
to Pope Avenue, down Pope Avenue
to Wilson Boulevard, turned east to
Frederick Street, and followed Fred
erick Street to Funkstown. Some
think it turned and followed Wilson
Boulevard to Frederick Street, but
others think it swung in curve
through the fields, and finally came
out along Frederick Street. At
Funkstown it crossed the same
bridge over the Antietam as the road,
and many will remember the tracks
on the highway here.
At Funkstown the trolley left
hOuJ6 ~, anu HedQ6Q OuI W Tie
site of the so-called dual Highway"
and followed almost its location to
Beaver Creek. From here am told
that it ran to Boonsboro, and that
somewhere in this vicinity there was
a junction, and that it was here that
the line to Frederick started. This
swung out again to follow the route
now used by the Dual Highway to
Frederick, and some of the old cuts
and track sites can still be seen.
Across the mountain to Myersville;
thence to Middletown, to Braddock,
and finally to Frederick.
This route will perhaps be one of
the best remembered, because it pro-
vided a sort of excursion trip" for
many folks who seldom got far from
home, besides the attractions of the
mountains and the parks.
So far as / could find out, there was
never trolley on East Washington
Street.
Now, up the hill of North Potomac
| Street. Can't you still hear the