Flashback Photos: When Atlanta had streetcars, 1871-1949

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Flashback Photos: When Atlanta had streetcars, 1871-1949

Atlanta has new streetcars, but this isn't the city's first experience with this mode of transportation.

Streetcars once ran by the Henry Grady statue on Marietta Street downtown. Photo from 1933.

A streetcar on Peachtree Street in 1945. Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Georgia Power Company streetcar in 1942. Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Streetcars runs past the First Baptist Church at the corner of Peachtree and Cain streets (now Peachtree St. and Andrew Young International Blvd.) as the church was being demolished. The structure was torn down early in 1929. From the AJC archives.

Streetcars once carried passengers all over Atlanta. This is a view of the Five Points area downtown.

Group portrait of the streetcar conductors of the Georgia Railway and Power Company, Atlanta, Georgia, November 1, 1904. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

A streetcar donated to the Southeastern Railway Museum will be delivered to the Duluth museum this Saturday. This is a Decatur 2-man car, retained by the Power Company after the 1920's modernization to maintain 2-man service to Decatur as required by that city's franchise agreement with Georgia Power (Georgia Railway & Power Co). These were some of the first 4-axle cars the Power Company purchased, and the paint scheme was applied in 1927 to differentiate the Decatur cars from the rest of the fleet (such as our #636). The car was probably built between 1908-1912. This series of cars was taken out of storage at Virginia Avenue Shops and given a quick re-hab in 1941 to restore streetcar service to the Shopper's Special downtown and the Ponce-de-Leon line which had been converted to trackless trolley in 1940 but were switched back due to increased wartime transit demand. This car was probably retired in 1945 or 1946.

A streetcar donated to the Southeastern Railway Museum will be delivered to the Duluth museum this Saturday. This is a Decatur 2-man car, retained by the Power Company after the 1920's modernization to maintain 2-man service to Decatur as required by that city's franchise agreement with Georgia Power (Georgia Railway & Power Co). These were some of the first 4-axle cars the Power Company purchased, and the paint scheme was applied in 1927 to differentiate the Decatur cars from the rest of the fleet (such as our #636). The car was probably built between 1908-1912. This series of cars was taken out of storage at Virginia Avenue Shops and given a quick re-hab in 1941 to restore streetcar service to the Shopper's Special downtown and the Ponce-de-Leon line which had been converted to trackless trolley in 1940 but were switched back due to increased wartime transit demand. This car was probably retired in 1945 or 1946.

Gainesville, winter 1909. Men standing beside a streetcar on North Green Street during an ice storm. This enclosed winter car ran from the Southern Railway depot at the end of Main Street to Chattahoochee Park at the end of Riverside Drive. Streetcars pulled by horses first made their appearance in Gainesville in 1874. Dr. Robert E. Green was the proprietor of this enterprise. The tracks ran from the Southern Railway depot on Main Street to the public square. The first streetcars to run on electric rails were seen in 1903. Over the years the lines were expanded. In 1928 some of the tracks in the business district were taken up. During World War II the rest of them were removed so that the materials could be used in the war effort." However, this photograph is almost certainly from January 31, 1908. Two ice storms devastated Gainesville one week apart, one on January 31 and the other on February 9/10, 1908. There is a brief account of the ice storms in the Atlanta Constitution, February 11, 1908, p. 7. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

A horse-drawn streetcar heads south on Peachtree Street in 1882. The photo was taken looking north from the railroad crossing. Actually, the streetcar might be on Whitehall, since the street was still known by that name south of Five Points (just north of Five Points, it became Peachtree in the 1860s). Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Soldiers and others celebrate V-J Day ("Victory over Japan Day") on top of a streetcar on Peachtree Street, Atlanta, Georgia, August 14, 1945. Atlanta Journal-Constitution Photographic Archive. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Soldiers on Georgia Power Company streetcar in July 1942. Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Streetcar rails being taking up on Forsyth Street in 1952. Tracy O'Neal Photographic Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Streetcar rails being taking up on Forsyth Street looking east in August 1952. Tracy O'Neal Photographic Collection. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

A look inside the streetcar. This photo is from 1943. Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

A streetcar being repaired in 1943. Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

Lane Brothers Commercial Photographers. Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library

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Streetcars once ran by the Henry Grady statue on Marietta Street downtown. Photo from 1933.

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