Seashore Trolley Museum
Encyclopedia
The Seashore Trolley Museum, located in Kennebunkport, Maine
, United States
, is the world's oldest and largest museum
of mass transit vehicles.
While the main focus of the collection is trolley cars
(trams), it also includes rapid transit
trains, trolley buses, and motor bus
es.
The Seashore Trolley Museum is owned and operated by the New England Electric Railway Historical Society (NEERHS), a non-profit organization
.
The railfans decided to find out if they could purchase a trolley to preserve it for posterity. The railroad was willing to sell them a car (#31, a 12 bench open trolley) for $150. However, it would have to be moved to another location due to local ordinances that prohibited retired trolleys from being used as houses, even though this was not the railfans' intention.
Theodore Santarelli was one of the founders and the true father of the museum. He graduated from Harvard University and led the museum until he died in 1987.
A plot of land, part of a farm, was rented on Log Cabin Road in Kennebunkport, and the trolley was moved to it.
At about the same time, another group of railfans purchased a trolley from the Manchester and Nashua Street Railway. The two groups merged, and the Nashua trolley was brought to the Log Cabin Road site.
World War II
caused the museum to be put on hold as many members served in the armed forces for the duration. This also brought about a temporary revival of trolley services in many cities, as rubber and gasoline were rationed
for the war effort.
After the war, conversion of trolley lines to buses resumed, and created a period of rapid growth for the museum's collection.
In the 1950s, a diesel
-powered electric generator was used to allow the cars to move under their own power. Car 31 was moved into a small building so that it could be repaired and restored.
As of 2010, the museum has over 260 vehicles. While most are from New England
and other areas of the United States
, trolleys from Canada
, Australia
, Japan
, Germany
, Hungary
, England
, Scotland
, Italy
, and several other countries are also in the collection.. Ironically, one of the motor buses the museum owns is Biddeford and Saco #31, the bus that replaced trolley #31 in 1939. The bus was donated to the museum by the bus company. The Seashore Trolley Museum is always receiving new vehicles for the collection, there is always a car in the restoration shop being worked on, and there is always a perfect time to go up! The museum is open from 10AM to 5PM, Memorial to Columbus Day-open daily, First weekend of May-Memorial Day, Columbus Day-last weekend in October-open weekends.
The trolleys that have been restored to operating condition are shown on display in three carbarns. There is a restoration shop with an elevated observation gallery so visitors can see how the vehicles are maintained and restored. Storage barns and tracks not accessible to the public contain vehicles that are awaiting restoration. A few of the restored trolleys are operating on the demonstration line at one time.
Restored trolleys are used on the museum's demonstration railway, which follows the route of the Atlantic Shore Line
, a trolley line that ran on the current museum property and connected Kennebunkport to York Beach. Since the line was abandoned in the 1920s, museum volunteers have rebuilt a mile and a half (about 2 km) from scratch. Seashore owns the right of way to Biddeford which is about 5 mi (8 km) from the Visitor's Center. On the demonstration route, they take you the mile and a half to Talbot Park (which is a loop to turn around the trolleys) and come back to the Visitor's Center.
The Collection of National Streetcars is what the museum is known for, but they also have international cars from Budapest
, Berlin, London, Nagasaki, Sydney, Blackpool, and more.
The collection of trolley buses
includes 17 vehicles (plus one passenger trailer), of which about seven or eight are currently in operating condition. Work is under way to extend the trolley bus line.
The museum is seeking to raise funds to build a new car house and library. The museum is also proposing to extend the trolley demonstration line to Route 1 in Biddeford.
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, is the world's oldest and largest museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
of mass transit vehicles.
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...
(trams), it also includes rapid transit
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
trains, trolley buses, and motor bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
es.
The Seashore Trolley Museum is owned and operated by the New England Electric Railway Historical Society (NEERHS), a non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
.
History
The events that led to the formation of the museum started in 1939, when a group of railfans learned that the Biddeford and Saco Railroad was purchasing motor buses to replace its fleet of trolley cars. More and more trolley companies were doing this as the technology of buses had developed to the point that they were reliable and economical.The railfans decided to find out if they could purchase a trolley to preserve it for posterity. The railroad was willing to sell them a car (#31, a 12 bench open trolley) for $150. However, it would have to be moved to another location due to local ordinances that prohibited retired trolleys from being used as houses, even though this was not the railfans' intention.
Theodore Santarelli was one of the founders and the true father of the museum. He graduated from Harvard University and led the museum until he died in 1987.
A plot of land, part of a farm, was rented on Log Cabin Road in Kennebunkport, and the trolley was moved to it.
At about the same time, another group of railfans purchased a trolley from the Manchester and Nashua Street Railway. The two groups merged, and the Nashua trolley was brought to the Log Cabin Road site.
World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
caused the museum to be put on hold as many members served in the armed forces for the duration. This also brought about a temporary revival of trolley services in many cities, as rubber and gasoline were rationed
Rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services. Rationing controls the size of the ration, one's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.- In economics :...
for the war effort.
After the war, conversion of trolley lines to buses resumed, and created a period of rapid growth for the museum's collection.
In the 1950s, a diesel
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
-powered electric generator was used to allow the cars to move under their own power. Car 31 was moved into a small building so that it could be repaired and restored.
As of 2010, the museum has over 260 vehicles. While most are from New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
and other areas of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, trolleys from Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and several other countries are also in the collection.. Ironically, one of the motor buses the museum owns is Biddeford and Saco #31, the bus that replaced trolley #31 in 1939. The bus was donated to the museum by the bus company. The Seashore Trolley Museum is always receiving new vehicles for the collection, there is always a car in the restoration shop being worked on, and there is always a perfect time to go up! The museum is open from 10AM to 5PM, Memorial to Columbus Day-open daily, First weekend of May-Memorial Day, Columbus Day-last weekend in October-open weekends.
Exhibits and features
The main building at the museum, the Visitor's Center, combines a ticket booth, a store, a snack bar, and an exhibit room with trolley and transit related artifacts.The trolleys that have been restored to operating condition are shown on display in three carbarns. There is a restoration shop with an elevated observation gallery so visitors can see how the vehicles are maintained and restored. Storage barns and tracks not accessible to the public contain vehicles that are awaiting restoration. A few of the restored trolleys are operating on the demonstration line at one time.
Restored trolleys are used on the museum's demonstration railway, which follows the route of the Atlantic Shore Line
Atlantic Shore Line Railway
Incorporated February 9, 1900, the Atlantic Shore Line was an electric trolley line providing passenger and freight service to many towns in York County, Maine...
, a trolley line that ran on the current museum property and connected Kennebunkport to York Beach. Since the line was abandoned in the 1920s, museum volunteers have rebuilt a mile and a half (about 2 km) from scratch. Seashore owns the right of way to Biddeford which is about 5 mi (8 km) from the Visitor's Center. On the demonstration route, they take you the mile and a half to Talbot Park (which is a loop to turn around the trolleys) and come back to the Visitor's Center.
The Collection of National Streetcars is what the museum is known for, but they also have international cars from Budapest
Budapest Metro
The Budapest Metro is the rapid transit system in the Hungarian capital Budapest. It is the second-oldest underground metro system in the world after the London Underground. Its iconic Line 1, dating from 1896, was declared a World Heritage Site in 2002.-Lines:The Metro consists of three lines,...
, Berlin, London, Nagasaki, Sydney, Blackpool, and more.
The collection of trolley buses
Trolleybus
A 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...
includes 17 vehicles (plus one passenger trailer), of which about seven or eight are currently in operating condition. Work is under way to extend the trolley bus line.
The museum is seeking to raise funds to build a new car house and library. The museum is also proposing to extend the trolley demonstration line to Route 1 in Biddeford.
See also
- Heritage railwayHeritage railwaythumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
- List of heritage railways
- Boston Street Railway AssociationBoston Street Railway AssociationThe Boston Street Railway Association is a non-profit organization in Boston, Massachusetts whose central objective is preserving transportation history in Boston and throughout New England. They host monthly membership meetings, publish a bimonthly transit news magazine, and are restoring an...
- Shore Line Trolley MuseumShore Line Trolley MuseumThe Shore Line Trolley Museum, located in East Haven, Connecticut, is the oldest operating trolley museum in the United States. It was founded to preserve the heritage of the trolley car. The museum includes exhibits on trolley history in the visitors' center and offers rides on restored trolleys...
- National Register of Historic Places listings in York County, MaineNational Register of Historic Places listings in York County, MaineThis is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in York County, Maine.This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in York County, Maine, United States...
- State of the Art Car (SOAC)