Exit133.com: Todd Matthews Finds A Tacoma Streetcar...

Todd Matthews Finds A Tacoma Streetcar... (31. May 2007, 11:12 by Derek Young) ~ We Like It

Todd Matthews of the Tacoma Daily Index spent a significant part of this last weekend Skagit County with Tom and Vince Mendenhall – the father-and-son team that owns Historic Railway Restoration. Since the late-1980s, the Mendenhalls have restored a number of streetcars for cities throughout the U.S. and Canada. They also own a 1908, 49-foot Turtleback streetcar that once operated in Tacoma.

Todd’s feature article today is about Historic Railway Restoration, his trip to Rockport, Washington, and the state of the old Tacoma streetcar he found. The story also includes a link to a photo essay with six pictures. The story is timed perfectly with the completion of the city’s feasibility study.

The Tacoma car looks like it could use some love… soon.

Amazing work, Todd.

Link to the Tacoma Daily Index

Photo by Todd Matthews

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That picture looks like the old streetcar that was in the bushes behind some homes off East 51st Street back when I was younger.

1 | Posted by Jake | May 31, 11:22 AM

Hey, this thing looks nicer than half the Pierce Transit busses ;-)

2 | Posted by Tacoma (A)roma | May 31, 01:17 PM

Great photos! I recently had the opportunities to see one of Issaquah’s trolley cars which is on outdoor display while it awaits restoration. If they can restore a trollwy system, surely we could!

3 | Posted by Dave L. | May 31, 01:19 PM

I must be the only one that would like to see modern street cars, just like the link downtown. Other wise I’m afraid they will look like those cheesy trolley styled busses or some amusement park ride. “Come visit the authentically styled Bavarian village of Leavenworth, or the turn of the century town of Tacoma”. Its not very realistic to rebuild the rotting hulk in the article. Do we trust the city to spend the time, money, and effort to build truly authentic turn of the century street cars? Don’t get me wrong I will take what I can get. I just think that something similar to the link would be more realistic, and oh yah run on down by my house while your at it.

4 | Posted by Hill Top Guy | May 31, 01:23 PM

Great article and photos from Todd. I agree with Hill Top Guy, too. A mix could certainly also happen like how Portland sometimes runs a more authentic-looking trolley on their normal light rail lines from time to time. Any streetcar system certainly needs to be more of a utility for the folks here than a tourist attraction.

5 | Posted by KevinFreitas | May 31, 01:50 PM

I am with you Hill Top Guy. I don’t think a vintage streetcar will have the appeal of the general public. If they want Tacoma to get excited about the streetcar they need to scrap the vintage stuff.

6 | Posted by Jake | May 31, 01:52 PM

Todd is tacoma’s best and only gonzo journalist. He really got to the guts of what being a historical trolley car restorer is all about.

Anyhow, I’m holding out to see the city bring back the sidewalk escalators

7 | Posted by RR Anderson | May 31, 02:17 PM

A couple of links to the Escalade in Tacoma.
photo1

photo2

photo3

The Tacoma Library does have some amazing photographs in their collection, and on line.

8 | Posted by Crenshaw Sepulveda | May 31, 05:04 PM

The reason someone from Tacoma might want to travel 130 miles to this open field is simple. Two vintage streetcars rest on a bluff overlooking a small pond: a 1919, 27-foot Birney model, and a 1908, 49-foot Turtleback model.

Great work Todd.

Your work on streetcars is now coming up to the in depth stories you did on the Winthrop Hotel.

You certainly deserved your recent award.

They also own a 1908, 49-foot Turtleback streetcar that once operated in Tacoma.

Yes, that’s authentic Tacoma. Its nice to see that other cities are bring back streetcars as well and we are lucky we have a city manager that has some vision on this issue.

9 | Posted by Erik B. | May 31, 05:15 PM

Sound Transit’s free streetcar in downtown Tacoma beat expectations by averaging 2,835 trips a day, or triple what a downtown bus carried.

Go Tacoma Street Cars!

And get this:

Licata faults the city for not emulating Tacoma, where the streetcar runs in its own median right of way. In Seattle, supporters got political traction by proposing the cheaper in-street design.

Tacoma is apparently the model for light rail.

10 | Posted by Erik B. | May 31, 08:17 PM

Good catch on the article Erik B. It’s interesting to see that Seattle topped Tacoma’s cost of $30M/mi with a $39M/mi line – yet it isn’t as efficient.

Track construction on the $51 million project has reached the halfway point…along the 1.3-mile route…

11 | Posted by DavidS | Jun 1, 07:54 AM

Wonderful work Todd! Thanks for helping keep the dream alive. I can’t wait to see this streetcar restored and running on Tacoma’s streets.

Look for a Tacoma Streetcar meeting this summer to kick-off the restoration initiative.

12 | Posted by morgan | Jun 1, 10:07 AM

Don’t miss the second part in Todd’s series on streetcars:

Building History: A father-and-son team put heritage trolleys back on city streets

EDITOR’S NOTE: This article is second of a two-part series on Tom and Vince Mendenhall — the father-and-son team that owns Historic Railway Restoration. The Mendenhalls also own a 1908 Turtleback streetcar that once operated in Tacoma, and now sits in storage on a field in Rockport, Wash.