Scranton Railway
File:The street railway review (1891) (14736678836).jpg
The Scranton Railway Company built and operated electric trolleys in and around Scranton, Pennsylvania, from 1896 until 1954.
The company was formed to consolidate various trolley companies in Scranton and Lackawanna County. At its peak, the company had city lines in Scranton and Dunmore and suburban lines north to Forest City and south to Duryea and Pittston. Its last trolley ran in 1954.
History
In 1900, it carried 10.5 million passengers.[http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~scwhite/kennedy/scranton1912/1912Scranton069.html SCRANTON: BEING AN ILLUSTRATED AND DESCRIPTIVE BOOKLET OF THE CITY OF SCRANTON, PENNSYLVANIA, U.S.A.] "The Scranton Railway Company", Scranton Board of Trade, 1912
In 1902, it operated more than 100 cars.[https://books.google.com/books?id=1lY4LVqjTU0C&dq=%22scranton+railway%22&pg=PA322 Street And Electric Railways, 1907]
In 1905, the railway was purchased by American Railways Company, a holding company that also owned the Altoona and Logan Valley Electric Railway, the People's Railway, the Springfield Railway Company, and other electric railways.{{cite journal | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H5pMAAAAYAAJ&q=%22scranton+railway%22&pg=PA531 | title=Eighth Annual Report of the American Railways Company | journal=The Street Railway Journal | year=1907 | volume=30 | pages=531}}The ARC also owned various electric utility companies through a 1901 merger with the Electric Company of America.[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F40717FD3A5D12738DDDAD0994DD405B818CF1D3 TRACTION AND LIGHTING COMBINE; Merger of American Railways Company and Electric Company of America.] In 1906, the Electric Company became the American Gas and Electric Company, which would be renamed American Electric Power in 1958.{{cite web|url=http://www.aep.com/about/history/ |title=History of AEP |publisher=www.aep.com |access-date=May 29, 2012}}
In 1907, the railway owned 47.63 miles of track, and operated over 81.55 miles of track.[https://books.google.com/books?id=5lYpAAAAYAAJ&dq=%22scranton+railway%22&pg=PA376 Street And Electric Railways, 1907]
In 1910, it operated five steam locomotives.[https://books.google.com/books?id=Rqw0AQAAMAAJ&dq=%22scranton+railway%22&pg=PA484 Street and Electric Railways (1910), U.S. Government Printing Office]
In 1912, it carried 24 million passengers. A promotional book produced by the city's Board of Trade touted the "Gateway to the Clouds", a 12-mile, 54-minute ride from downtown Scranton that rose 1,200 feet to the resort area of Lake Moosic. This route traveled over the leased Scranton, Dunmore, and Moosic Lake Railroad.
In the 1920s, ridership began to decline. Long suburban lines were cut back as buses began to appear. In 1923, the Scranton Railway Company asked for and received approval from the local Public Service Commission to abandon its service from Scranton to Pittston.{{sfnp|Henwood|Muncie|2005}} In 1925, it abandoned service from Old Forge to Duryea, where there was a connection to Wilkes-Barre.{{sfnp|Henwood|Muncie|2005}}
From 1925-28, the company was owned by National Public Service Corporation, which was soon taken over by Chicago businessman Samuel Insull's Middle West Utilities Co. Insull's Chicago-based business empire collapsed in 1932,[https://books.google.com/books?id=J2zH-zcuU-MC&dq=%22scranton+railway%22&pg=PA200 The Electric Interurban Railways in America] whereupon the company passed to the Municipal Service Co.[http://www.chicagorailfan.com/aatpascr.html TRANSIT SYSTEMS IN PENNSYLVANIA: SCRANTON/WILKES BARRE: Scranton] In 1934, the Scranton Railway was reorganized as Scranton Transit Company.
Its last trolley car ran in 1954, its lines replaced by buses.[http://thetimes-tribune.com/lifestyles-people/electric-city-trolley-station-and-museum-celebrates-125th-anniversary-of-first-successful-streetcar-line-1.1163442 Electric City Trolley Station and Museum celebrates 125th anniversary of first successful streetcar line]
Scranton Transit ceased all bus operations on Nov. 15, 1971.{{cite news| newspaper=The Scranton Times| date=December 29, 1971| page=6| title=Our Opinion| via=Newspapers.com}} It was succeeded in 1972 by the County of Lackawanna Transit System.
Footnotes
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References
- {{cite book |first1=James N. J. |last1=Henwood |first2=John G. |last2=Muncie |title=Laurel Line: An Anthracite Region Railway |date=2005 |edition=2nd |publisher=Tribute Books |location=Eynon, PA.|isbn=978-0-9765-0723-9 |oclc=62596593 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=czsmvgAACAAJ}}
{{Pennsylvania railroads}}
Category:Scranton, Pennsylvania
Category:Defunct Pennsylvania railroads
Category:Interurban railways in Pennsylvania
Category:Railway companies established in 1896
Category:Railway companies disestablished in 1954
Category:1896 establishments in Pennsylvania
Category:American companies established in 1896