Pittsburgh and Butler Street Railway

Pittsburgh and Butler Street Railway

Locale

Western Pennsylvania:
Dates of operation 1907–1917
Successor Pittsburgh, Mars and Butler Railway
Track gauge Pennsylvania Trolley Gauge,
5 ft 2 1⁄2 in (1,588 mm)
Headquarters Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Mars and Butler Railway
Legend
 New Castle
Elwood Junction
Burnstown
Elwood
Beaver Falls
Butler
Evans City
Mars
Pittsburgh (Liberty and Market)

The Pittsburgh and Butler Street Railway, commonly called the Butler Short Line, was a broad gauge[1] interurban streetcar line connecting Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States to Butler via Mars.

Contents

History

The Pittsburgh and Butler Street Railway was opened in 1907 between Pittsburgh and Butler[2] traveling via Etna, Glenshaw, Allison Park, and Mars. In 1914 the railway converted from AC to 1200V DC which reduced power consumption by 15% and reduced the weight of each car by 6 tons.[1]

In 1917 the railway amalgamated with the Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler and New Castle Railway, who operated the Harmony Line between Pittsburgh and New Castle, the new company being named the Pittsburgh, Mars and Butler Railway.[3]

In April 1931 the company went into receivership. The Butler Short Line was closed on 22 April 1931[4] as it was in poor condition, services being absorbed into the existing PA 8 bus service. The stub of the Butler Short Line continued to be used by Pittsburgh Railways as the 2 Etna service until closure in 1952.[5]

Route

Leaving Butler going south along South Chestnut Street the railway crossed the rails of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) and the Bessemer and Lake Erie Railroad (B&LE), before turning west down the valley of the Connoquenessing Creek through Bredinville.[6] Running parallel to the B&LE through Odell and then east into Thorn Creek past Renfrew Station, the line then headed south, climbing out of Thorn Creek valley alongside Three Degree Road, where the Butler Country Club had a stop of their own. When Butler County Airport was constructed Three Degree Road was diverted to use the old track bed, now forming the eastern perimeter road of the airport.

The line continued south, descending into the valley of Breakneck Creek and passing through Mars.[7] It continued south along the valley, through Downieville and Valencia to Etna, where it joined the local Pittsburgh Railways route to downtown.

Incidents

Two cars collided on March 27, 1909 after one was delayed by a derailment on the grade crossing of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad near Mars. The crash occurred near Bryant Station and three people died at the scene, all employees of the railway.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b William D. Middleton (1961). The Interurban Era. Kalmbach Publishing. p. 113, 430. http://www.archive.org/details/interurbanera00midd. 
  2. ^ Robert B. Van Atta (23 December 2001). "EARLY NORTH HILLS CARS". Pittsburgh Tribune. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_9225.html. Retrieved 6 October 2009. 
  3. ^ "Rachel Carson Trails - Harmony Trail". 3 February 2007. http://www.rachelcarsontrails.org/ht. Retrieved 02 September 2009. 
  4. ^ "Zelienople Historical Society - The Harmony Line - The End of an Era". 2004. http://www.fyi.net/~zhs/HarmonyLine/end.htm. Retrieved 4 October 2009. 
  5. ^ "Pittsburghtransit.com - The Routes - PCC Operation". 28 August 2005. Archived from the original on 28 August 2005. http://web.archive.org/web/20050828213648/http://www.pittsburghtransit.com/index9.html. Retrieved 9 August 2009. 
  6. ^ United States Geological Survey. Butler, PA Quadrangle (Map). 1:62500. 15 Minute (Feb. 1911 ed.). http://historical.mytopo.com/quad.cfm?quadname=Butler&state=PA&series=15. 
  7. ^ United States Geological Survey. Sewickley, PA Quadrangle (Map). 1:62500. 15 Minute (Feb. 1911 ed.). http://historical.mytopo.com/quad.cfm?quadname=Sewickley&state=PA&series=15. Retrieved November 14, 2010. 
  8. ^ "Three killed as electric cars crash" (PDF). The New York Times. March 28, 1909. http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9C04E3D81439E733A2575BC2A9659C946897D6CF. Retrieved November 22, 2009.