Streetcars
in Amarillo
Electric streetcar lines were opened for transit by
the Amarillo Street Railway System in Amarillo, January 1, 1908. The work was
rushed to complete a deadline on that date and a huge crowd gathered to watch
as cars were pushed into place on the main line. Free rides were provided and jubilant
cheers from onlookers could be heard as the first cars slowly moved down the
street.
The line was owned by the city but was organized by
local grocery men H.A. & M.C. Nobles. At its height there were ten cars but
usually six were in operation while others were in for maintenance and repairs.
In peak times when lots of people were
in town, all were put into service.
In 1913, after experiencing heavy financial losses
the Streetcar line was sold to the Henry L Doherty Co. of New York. In 1916 the
Amarillo Street Railway Company was put into receivership. Up until then the
citizens of Amarillo were unaware of the financial problems.
Many pleas were made to keep the cars running but
the city declared that the issue was not up to them but to the federal court
handling the case. A sheriff’s sale was scheduled for September 4, 1917.
On August 27, J.E. Lewis, a civil engineer from
Dallas, appeared before the city commission and placed a bid for the streetcar
company, saying he wanted to remove it from Amarillo and “convert it to junk.”
Evidently the offer was refused because on the date
appointed for the sale, by authority of federal judge George Jack, the
streetcar line was sold to G. Gordon Brownell of Westfield, New Jersey.
All through the court actions the cars had
continued to run and citizens were relieved when after the sale they continued
to make the rounds of Amarillo streets.
But on October 17, as per order of the Brownell
Company, streetcar service was suspended. It was claimed that it was done
without notice to the city commission or to the citizens of Amarillo. People
were literally left standing waiting for the next car to come down the track.
The cars were locked in the barn with guards placed
around the building. Fifteen men were out of work and many commuters left
stranded. On that Saturday morning a
special meeting by the city commission was called. Guy W. Faller, who was an
Amarillo resident employed by the Brownell Co., answered questions.
He explained he had received a telegram from the
company on Friday night ordering him to discontinue the streetcar service at
once.
The San Jacinto line was owned by a different company,
Amarillo Traction, and was not affected.
Jitney (bus) service had not yet come to Amarillo
and the city was hit hard. The Glenwood Addition, two miles from the business
district, and the Santa Fe shops and roadhouse was left stranded.
On November 3, the city wired the Brownell Co.
offering $25,000 for the streetcar line but was turned down; Brownell said it
was worth $150,000 in junk. The city took immediate steps, revoking the
franchise of the streetcar company as a measure to prevent the removal of the
tracks.
In August 1918, Mayor Lon D. Marrs, accompanied by
several businessmen and attorney T.F. Turner, made a trip to New York to meet
with company officials. Brownell offered to lease the streetcar line to the
city for a yearly rental of 10% of the valuation of the property at $80,000.
Three per cent of said rental would be for depreciation. He also suggested the
matter be referred to the judgment of citizens of Amarillo.
On January 28, 1919 Mayor Marrs spoke to the city commission
and a large delegation of citizens about improvement and extensions for the
railcar line and said he thought Brownell’s offer was a fair one.
Plans were completed and a contract drawn up by
late March with hopes the lines would soon be again in operation. But…it was
not to be. Brownell explaining the plans did not conform to the agreement
reached the previous August.
The hang-up was that Brownell wanted the lines to
Glenwood moved and put in a more prosperous part of town. After being called to
address the commissioners meeting discussing the contract, M.C. Nobles said, “The
people of Glenwood are not a wealthy body of people, but most of them have
spent their money building homes out there because there was a street railway
running in that addition. Moreover, we gave one-fourth of the Glenwood Addition
to get the cars to run in said addition.”
It was moved and carried by all those present to
reject the Brownell contract.
An editorial in The Amarillo Daily News of July 13,
1919 read: “The News feels that it voices the sentiment of the citizens of the city
when it says the controversy has grown monotonous, and almost any reasonable
action on the part of the city commission would be acceptable.”
An agreeable lease with Brownell was finally agreed
upon in early 1920; Glenwood would remain on the line. After being idle for
three years, streetcars began rolling on July 5 of that year.
But, in June 1923, after three years of operating
in the red, the new city mayor, Eugene S. Blasdel knew something had to be done
and he, along with the city commission voted to shut the operation down. However, a committee led by Amarillo banker W.H.
Fuqua, asked the city to wait until after the Technological Committee visited
Amarillo in August. They were searching for a suitable city in which to locate
a college and Amarillo was on the list. The city agreed.
The streetcars were making their last run when the
Technological Committee came to town. Everything was done to make a good
impression and citizens were given free rides on the streetcars, which were
running full blast. They were filled by happy people with great expectations.
But it was not to be. Lubbock was chosen for the
college and the streetcars stopped for good on September 1, 1923.
All properties, with the exception of real estate,
were sold to A.W. Joiner in January 1924 and an exciting era in Amarillo’s
history came to an end.
Many tracks are still visible in downtown Amarillo.
Take a Sunday afternoon when the traffic is light and explore what’s left of
the Amarillo Street Railway System.
