Oregon Electric Railway Museum
Encyclopedia
The Oregon Electric Railway Museum is the largest streetcar/trolley
museum in the Pacific Northwest
of the United States
. It is owned and operated by the Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society
and is located in Brooks, Oregon
, on the grounds of Antique Powerland
.
The original museum opened in Glenwood
, about 40 miles west of Portland
, in 1959, with operation of streetcars starting in 1963. It was named Trolley Park or, more commonly, the Trolley Park, but its formal name in later years was the same as the present museum. Operation at that site ended in autumn 1995.
The current museum opened in Brooks in 1996. The museum consists of about one mile of mainline track with overhead wire
. There is a four-track carbarn to store the international collection of streetcars.
The collection includes:
The museum is open from May through October with trolley operations on Saturdays. The big event of the year is the annual Steam-Up, held on the last weekend of July and the first weekend of August. Thousands of riders use the trolley during these two weekends.
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
museum in the Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest is a region in northwestern North America, bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains on the east. Definitions of the region vary and there is no commonly agreed upon boundary, even among Pacific Northwesterners. A common concept of the...
of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is owned and operated by the Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society
Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society
The Oregon Electric Railway Historical Society operates a railroad museum and a heritage railroad for electric streetcar and railway enthusiasts.-History:...
and is located in Brooks, Oregon
Brooks, Oregon
Brooks is an unincorporated community in Marion County, Oregon, United States. For statistical purposes, the United States Census Bureau has defined Brooks as a census-designated place . The census definition of the area may not precisely correspond to local understanding of the area with the same...
, on the grounds of Antique Powerland
Antique Powerland
Antique Powerland is a collection of museums and a self-described heritage site for power equipment, such as farm machinery, trucks , trains, construction equipment, and the engines which power them. It is located in Brooks, Oregon, United States, and is operated by the non-profit Antique...
.
The original museum opened in Glenwood
Glenwood, Washington County, Oregon
Glenwood is an unincorporated community in Washington County, Oregon, United States, northwest of Forest Grove on Oregon Route 6.The name Glenwood was first used for this locale around 1880. Glenwood post office was established in 1886, though it was not always in the same location...
, about 40 miles west of Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
, in 1959, with operation of streetcars starting in 1963. It was named Trolley Park or, more commonly, the Trolley Park, but its formal name in later years was the same as the present museum. Operation at that site ended in autumn 1995.
The current museum opened in Brooks in 1996. The museum consists of about one mile of mainline track with overhead wire
Overhead lines
Overhead lines or overhead wires are used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains at a distance from the energy supply point...
. There is a four-track carbarn to store the international collection of streetcars.
The collection includes:
- Two PortlandPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
1904 Brill streetcars (nicknamed Council Crest type), Nos. 503 and 506 - Portland 1932 Brill "Master Unit", No. 813
- Portland-built interurbanInterurbanAn interurban, also called a radial railway in parts of Canada, is a type of electric passenger railroad; in short a hybrid between tram and train. Interurbans enjoyed widespread popularity in the first three decades of the twentieth century in North America. Until the early 1920s, most roads were...
, No. 1067 - Blackpool, England double-decker tram, No. 48
- Sydney, Australia, open-sided "Breezer" streetcar, No. 1187
- Porto, Portugal single-truck streetcar, No. 210
- Los Angeles "yellow" car, No. 1318
- Two San Francisco PCC streetcarPCC streetcarThe PCC streetcar design was first built in the United States in the 1930s. The design proved successful in its native country, and after World War II was licensed for use elsewhere in the world...
s, Nos. 1118 and 1159 - San Francisco Boeing LRVUS Standard Light Rail VehicleThe US Standard Light Rail Vehicle was an attempt at a standardized light rail vehicle promoted by the United States Urban Mass Transportation Administration and built by Boeing Vertol in the 1970s...
, No. 1213 - Hong Kong double-decker tram, No. 12
- Portland snow sweeper, No. 1455
- Three electric locomotive "steeple cabSteeplecabIn railroad terminology, a steeplecab is a style or design of electric locomotive; the term is rarely if ever used for other forms of power...
s" - Three types of trolley busesTrolleybusA trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
: a Twin CoachTwin CoachTwin Coach was an American vehicle manufacturing company from 1927 to 1955, based in Kent, Ohio, and a maker of marine engines and airplane parts until the 1960s. It was formed by brothers Frank and William Fageol when they left the Fageol Motor Company in 1927. They established the company in...
and a Pullman-StandardPullman CompanyThe Pullman Palace Car Company, founded by George Pullman, manufactured railroad cars in the mid-to-late 19th century through the early decades of the 20th century, during the boom of railroads in the United States. Pullman developed the sleeping car which carried his name into the 1980s...
from Seattle and a CCF-Canadian Car and FoundryCanadian Car and Foundry also variously known as "Canadian Car & Foundry," or more familiarly as "Can Car," manufactured buses, railroad rolling stock and later aircraft for the Canadian market...
Brill from VancouverVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
The museum is open from May through October with trolley operations on Saturdays. The big event of the year is the annual Steam-Up, held on the last weekend of July and the first weekend of August. Thousands of riders use the trolley during these two weekends.
See also
- Heritage streetcarHeritage streetcarHeritage streetcars or heritage trams are a development of the heritage railways that are becoming popular across the world. As with modern streetcar systems, the vehicles are referred to as trams or tramcars in the United Kingdom, Australasia and certain other places , but as streetcars or...
- Streetcars in North America
External links
- Oregon Electric Railway Museum - official site