The Streetcar That Almost Died

this is Ward Street in Nelson British Columbia the Victorian era architecture and giant maple trees are a typical site while the Charming Aesthetics of Nelson are often admired there is a subtle feature that often goes unnoticed the tracks that run along the length of this sidewalk in another neighborhood you'll find a second set of tracks and over here curiously these tracks lead to Nowhere despite their presence there are no trains that pass through this part of the city they serve no purpose other than to encase the concrete in another part of Nelson tucked away in a barn rests a meticulously restored streetcar it's easy to assume that these forgotten tracks belong to a streetcar system from a bygone era and you wouldn't be far off yet the true story these tracks tell is one of a community's unwavering determination to preserve A Streetcar system that is teetered on the edge of collapse multiple times since the late 1800s [Music] full of comfort for six adults in a car that will give you up to 30 miles a gallon for America's Transit lines make their run safely and on schedule it's July 13 1898 Nelson's Council receives a letter penned by Charles S Drummond a representative of the British electric traction in his letter Drummond conveyed the company's desire to extend their operations in Canada as Nelson now appears to become large enough to support a street Railway line on August 1st 1899 Drummond returns to Nelson to drive the first Spike for the inauguration of the new streetcar system this is a map of the initial streetcar line catering to Nelson's pedestrian traffic the streetcar provide access to the lower mostly flat areas of the city and the southern neighborhood characterized by its San francisco-like Hills at this time the streets are filled with horses wagons and carriages automobiles are a relatively new invention and not yet widely available to the general public but for now the clatter of Nelson's two streetcars would signal a new era of public transportation for Nelson by 1904 the Nelson streetcars have been running for five years but unfortunately it was operating at a loss it was at this point that the British electric traction company convinced the city to take over through a four-year lease agreement on April 27 1908 a fire wreaks havoc on the city's light and power services along with the car barn and two of its streetcars it isn't long before the power is back on but it would take two and a half years for the streetcars to come back into service the introduction of the Model T Ford in October 1908 signals a new age of automobile ownership by 1910 automobiles are making appearances in Nelson Archie Bremner Imports the city's first personal automobile followed by Paul nippu by November 8 1910 people would ride the streetcar once more invigorated by an expanded uphill Loop and pushing Eastward catering to a growing City but the excitement of an operational streetcar is quickly diminished a runaway car shuts the system down for another six months while brakes and safety switches are installed the streetcar again would find itself in financial difficulties forcing the city to take over in 1913. meanwhile Ford is adopting an assembly line process cutting manufacturing time down from 12 hours to 33 minutes this signal a new age in automobile ownership small buses called jitneys are making their way into other parts of Canada and beginning to chip away at the streetcar business but for now the streets of Nelson would still be dominated by horses and the streetcar would remain a necessity as World War One unfolds a recession looms by 1919 the city's streetcar system is still facing significant losses prompting political opinion in 1920 Annie Garland Foster would become the first woman to join the city council bringing financial success back to the streetcar system through discounted ticket books by the end of the year the streetcars had carried an astonishing 400 000 Riders but this success is hampered when on July 15 1921 Uncle wood the car barn hand accidentally switches the current to car number two causing it to nudge the snow sweeper through the north side of the car barn while the snow sweeper could be repaired the streetcar system despite its prior success would face Financial challenges once again a year later in 1922 a local named Johnny learmonth would build his own bus and start running trips in the area automobiles are becoming a common sight with 375 registrations in Nelson by the end of 1923. like many other parts of the country Nelson's streetcar system was not spared from the harsh effects of the Great Depression the economic downturn led to a significant decline in ridership and the outdated technology of the streetcars posed challenges for maintenance replacement parts were scarce and had to be Hand Forged by the end of 1930 Nelson experienced a significant increase in the number of vehicles on its streets it was perhaps this surge that prompted a period of reflection for the streetcar system leading to the decision to Rebrand the streetcar numbers one two and three to the new numbers of 21 22 and 21st more buses are making their way into the area including Canadian Greyhound lines managed by John learmonthu if you recall built his own bus 17 years prior amidst serious debate surrounding the potential replacement of streetcars with buses the outcome sways in favor of retaining the streetcar system during World War II automobile technology advances significantly four-wheel drive suspension systems assembly refinements and diesel engines emerge automobile ownership is Rising by 1945 Nelson would boast 1 125 registered Automobiles and 500 commercial vehicles across the province Vancouver would see their first trolley bus routes open on August 16 1948. buses too are replacing streetcars in other places in Canada and Nelson was no exception by 1949 another vote to replace Nelson's streetcars with buses was put into motion and succeeded by June 20th 1949 Nelson's streetcar was Run for the last time but for many the streetcar was more than just a way to get from point A to point B as expressed by one person it was an uplift to see one of our old cars come wobbling around the bend knowing it would land a safely home which in my case it always did for another they shared if they could talk they would most likely say something like this I got you there and brought you back through the rain and sleet and snow years would take its toll on the remaining streetcars one would become a dressing room at an outdoor rink while the others would become a greenhouse and eventually a kennel Bandos would Target the remaining street cars smashing windows and causing additional damage in time all but one of Nelson Street cars are destroyed the last of the tracks are sold off though some may have been repurposed as sidewalk material on different streets as it might have been cheaper than selling them off across the province streetcar systems are being dismantled and replaced with buses Victoria's last street car ran on July 5th 1948 Vancouver's last run was on April 24th 1955. Nelson streetcar system however refused to surrender in 1982 the local College secured funding to restore the last remaining car streetcar number 23. by 1992 Nelson would see its streetcar running once more this forgotten tracks are a reminder of the way things were a necessity when time was slower a unique aspect of a city's identity despite the modernization of automobile technology a comforting clatter from A Hard Day's Work and a friendly reminder that your home [Music] well every time we went to Baker Street to do some shopping we would take the streetcar down to Baker Street and home but the only thing I remember is that on occasion we would try to run out and grab the streetcar while it was running after the car and try and grab the a hand hold here and there and make trouble it takes an enormous amount of work with the volunteers last year for instance we did 11 000 hours of volunteer hours and it's kind of a passion because it's part of Nelson's history and the group down here and we have 80 volunteers and they have the same passion to try and keep the car running [Music] foreign

Channel: Unknown Corners

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Length: 9min 40sec (580 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 11 2023