San Diego Class 1 Streetcars
Encyclopedia
The San Diego Class 1 Streetcars were a fleet of twenty-four unique streetcars that were originally built to provide transportation for the Panama-California Exposition in Balboa Park. The cars were designed by the San Diego Electric Railway
Company (SDERy) under the leadership of John D. Spreckels
and built by the St. Louis Car Company
(SLCCo). These cars, which took the best elements from preceding models and integrated them into a new, modern streetcar design, went on to serve the many neighborhoods of San Diego until they were retired in 1939.
While most of them were ultimately destroyed over the years, three remaining Class 1 streetcars were saved from this fate in 1996 by a San Diego antique dealer and collector. They have since been designated San Diego Historic Landmarks (#339) and have been adequately preserved to this day.
and to advertise San Diego as a vital port destination for traveling ships, city leaders planned the Panama-California Exposition of 1915. It was decided it would take place in Balboa Park, which was largely an open space park up until that point and would have to undergo major renovations and construction to be made ready for the event. Visionary artists and developers from San Diego and throughout America came together to design and construct an impressive new park. Apart from the architectural and botanical transformations that took place in Balboa Park, John D. Spreckels and his San Diego Electric Railway Company (SDERy) took on the task of providing public transportation for the Exposition. Directing a team of engineers and designers led by Abel A. Butterworth, Spreckels and SDERy Vice President, William Clayton, sought to develop a new streetcar that could both provide transportation for the visitors at the Panama-California Exposition and for the city of San Diego in the following decades of anticipated growth.
One of the main goals for Spreckels and San Diego Electric Railway was improving upon the flaws of existing streetcars, all the while synthesizing their strengths. Taking notes from both the “California Car” and “Closed Car” models, Butterworth and his team successfully developed an updated, modern streetcar with improved safety, speed, technology, and overall design. These new cars, known as the Class 1s, were also designed in the Arts & Crafts
style with an artist’s touch to complement the changes to Balboa Park. Built by the world renowned Saint Louis Car Company, they were adorned with warm yellow colors, gold-leafed oak leaves, hand-polished cherry wood, and solid bronze hardware –- even the push buttons passengers used to alert the motorman were inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
The fleet of twenty-four Class 1 streetcars went on to serve the patrons of the Panama-California Exposition and the citizens of San Diego for a number of years.
One of the most significant features of the Class 1s was the development of the “center entrance”, a large opening door in the center of the streetcar that also lowered spring-loaded steps for ease of entrance. This improved safety a great deal and made it easier for women in there fashionable “hobble skirts” to enter a streetcar with a greatly reduced risk of falling over. This new center entrance was also combined, for the first time in the Class 1 streetcars, with the “P.A.Y.E”, or “Pay As You Enter”, system. Soon after San Diego’s streetcars were developed, New York City followed suit and commissioned their own center entrance, “P.A.Y.E.” streetcar line.
The various advancements made with the Class 1s ensured their widespread expansion across San Diego, with lines ultimately running everywhere from Downtown, to Coronado
, Ocean Beach
, Mission Hills
, Old Town, Hillcrest
, University Heights, North Park
, South Park, Golden Hill
, Kensington
, Chula Vista
, and even to the U.S.-Mexico border (until 1916).
. Developed by a collaborative committee of streetcar company presidents, this mass-produced vehicle was designed to look like a then modern city bus and represented a necessary shift during the tough economic times.
As a result, the Class 1 streetcars were retired and some were auctioned off in 1939. Some were even turned into homes, before a city law that prevented the practice was passed later that same year. Following the ban on streetcar sales, the remaining Class 1 bodies were destroyed. However, the sale of a few of these streetcars has allowed for three of these important pieces of San Diego history to be preserved until this day.
, found that the Class 1s were ideal candidates for restoration and recommended that they return to the streets on a streetcar line.
San Diego Electric Railway
The San Diego Electric Railway was a mass transit system in Southern California, USA, using streetcars and buses.The SDERy was established by "sugar heir," developer, and entrepreneur John D. Spreckels in 1892...
Company (SDERy) under the leadership of John D. Spreckels
John D. Spreckels
John Diedrich Spreckels , the son of German-American industrialist Claus Spreckels, founded a transportation and real estate empire in San Diego, California in the late 19th and early 20th centuries...
and built by the St. Louis Car Company
St. Louis Car Company
The St. Louis Car Company was a major United States manufacturer of railroad passenger cars, streetcars, trolleybuses and locomotives that existed from 1887–1973, based in St. Louis, Missouri.-History:...
(SLCCo). These cars, which took the best elements from preceding models and integrated them into a new, modern streetcar design, went on to serve the many neighborhoods of San Diego until they were retired in 1939.
While most of them were ultimately destroyed over the years, three remaining Class 1 streetcars were saved from this fate in 1996 by a San Diego antique dealer and collector. They have since been designated San Diego Historic Landmarks (#339) and have been adequately preserved to this day.
The Panama-California Exposition and the inception of the Class 1 streetcars
To celebrate the opening of the Panama CanalPanama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
and to advertise San Diego as a vital port destination for traveling ships, city leaders planned the Panama-California Exposition of 1915. It was decided it would take place in Balboa Park, which was largely an open space park up until that point and would have to undergo major renovations and construction to be made ready for the event. Visionary artists and developers from San Diego and throughout America came together to design and construct an impressive new park. Apart from the architectural and botanical transformations that took place in Balboa Park, John D. Spreckels and his San Diego Electric Railway Company (SDERy) took on the task of providing public transportation for the Exposition. Directing a team of engineers and designers led by Abel A. Butterworth, Spreckels and SDERy Vice President, William Clayton, sought to develop a new streetcar that could both provide transportation for the visitors at the Panama-California Exposition and for the city of San Diego in the following decades of anticipated growth.
One of the main goals for Spreckels and San Diego Electric Railway was improving upon the flaws of existing streetcars, all the while synthesizing their strengths. Taking notes from both the “California Car” and “Closed Car” models, Butterworth and his team successfully developed an updated, modern streetcar with improved safety, speed, technology, and overall design. These new cars, known as the Class 1s, were also designed in the Arts & Crafts
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
style with an artist’s touch to complement the changes to Balboa Park. Built by the world renowned Saint Louis Car Company, they were adorned with warm yellow colors, gold-leafed oak leaves, hand-polished cherry wood, and solid bronze hardware –- even the push buttons passengers used to alert the motorman were inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
The fleet of twenty-four Class 1 streetcars went on to serve the patrons of the Panama-California Exposition and the citizens of San Diego for a number of years.
The streetcars in operation in San Diego
Following the success of the Panama-California Exposition, the Class 1 streetcars became a mainstay of early 20th century public transportation in San Diego. The improved design was met with enthusiasm from the general public and these streetcars became a popular mode of transit, often carrying over twice their intended capacity in passengers.One of the most significant features of the Class 1s was the development of the “center entrance”, a large opening door in the center of the streetcar that also lowered spring-loaded steps for ease of entrance. This improved safety a great deal and made it easier for women in there fashionable “hobble skirts” to enter a streetcar with a greatly reduced risk of falling over. This new center entrance was also combined, for the first time in the Class 1 streetcars, with the “P.A.Y.E”, or “Pay As You Enter”, system. Soon after San Diego’s streetcars were developed, New York City followed suit and commissioned their own center entrance, “P.A.Y.E.” streetcar line.
The various advancements made with the Class 1s ensured their widespread expansion across San Diego, with lines ultimately running everywhere from Downtown, to Coronado
Coronado, California
Coronado, also known as Coronado Island, is an affluent resort city located in San Diego County, California, 5.2 miles from downtown San Diego. Its population was 24,697 at the 2010 census, up from 24,100 at the 2000 census. U.S. News and World Report lists Coronado as one of the most expensive...
, Ocean Beach
Ocean Beach, San Diego, California
Ocean Beach is a beachfront neighborhood of San Diego, California.-Geography:Ocean Beach is located in San Diego on the Southern California coast. It lies on the Pacific Ocean at the estuary of the San Diego River, at the western terminus of Interstate 8. It is approximately from Downtown San...
, Mission Hills
Mission Hills, San Diego, California
Mission Hills is a neighborhood of San Diego, California, USA. It is located on hills just south of the San Diego River valley and north of downtown San Diego, overlooking Old Town and San Diego Bay. It was subdivided on January 20, 1908 as a smaller portion of what is now referred to as Mission...
, Old Town, Hillcrest
Hillcrest, San Diego, California
Hillcrest is a neighborhood in San Diego, California northwest of Balboa Park and south of Mission Valley.Hillcrest is known for its tolerance, diversity, and locally-owned businesses, including restaurants, cafés, bars, clubs, trendy thrift-stores, and other independent specialty stores...
, University Heights, North Park
North Park, San Diego, California
North Park is a neighborhood in San Diego, California, USA. It is situated to the northeast of Balboa Park, bounded on the north by the canyons overlooking Mission Valley, on the south by Switzer Canyon and the South Park neighborhood, on the east by Interstate 805 and City Heights, and on the...
, South Park, Golden Hill
Golden Hill, San Diego, California
Golden Hill is a neighborhood of San Diego, California. It is located south of Balboa Park, north of Sherman Heights/Highway 94 , and east of Downtown....
, Kensington
Kensington, San Diego, California
Kensington is a neighborhood of San Diego, California. Its borders are defined by Interstate 15 to the west, Interstate 8 to the north, Fairmount Avenue to the east, and El Cajon Boulevard to the south. Its neighboring communities are Normal Heights to the west, Talmadge to the east, and City...
, Chula Vista
Chula Vista, California
Chula Vista is the second largest city in the San Diego metropolitan area, the seventh largest city in Southern California, the fourteenth largest city in the State of California, and the seventy seventh largest city in the U.S....
, and even to the U.S.-Mexico border (until 1916).
The Great Depression leads to the retirement of the Class 1 streetcars
Ultimately, after some updates and improvements in the mid 1920s, the San Diego Class 1 streetcars met the same fate as most light rail as The Great Depression began to take hold in America. As the government moved to economize public transportation systems in order to reduce the financial burden of public transit budgets, many cities decided to make the switch to the cheaper, utilitarian Presidents' Conference Committee (PCC) streetcarsPCC streetcar
The 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...
. Developed by a collaborative committee of streetcar company presidents, this mass-produced vehicle was designed to look like a then modern city bus and represented a necessary shift during the tough economic times.
As a result, the Class 1 streetcars were retired and some were auctioned off in 1939. Some were even turned into homes, before a city law that prevented the practice was passed later that same year. Following the ban on streetcar sales, the remaining Class 1 bodies were destroyed. However, the sale of a few of these streetcars has allowed for three of these important pieces of San Diego history to be preserved until this day.
The preservation and future of the Class 1 streetcars
After functioning as homes for over 50 years, in 1996 a private antique dealer purchased the three remaining Class 1 streetcars and has been personally preserving them until today. Since then, they have been officially designated a San Diego Historic Landmark (#339) and inspected and viewed by a number of experts and enthusiasts. Fred Bennett, who was involved with the San Francisco Vintage Trolley projectSan Francisco Municipal Railway
The San Francisco Municipal Railway is the public transit system for the city and county of San Francisco, California. In 2006, it served with an operating budget of about $700 million...
, found that the Class 1s were ideal candidates for restoration and recommended that they return to the streets on a streetcar line.