Chicago City Railway
| Dates of operation | 1859–1914 (operation) 1950 (liquidation) |
|---|---|
| Successor | Chicago Surface Lines (operator) Chicago Transit Authority (owner) |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Electrification | 600 V DC Overhead wire (converted 1893-1906) |
The Chicago City Railway Company (CCRy) was an urban transit company that operated horse, cable, and electric streetcars on Chicago’s South Side between 1859 and 1914, when it became merged into and part of the Chicago Surface Lines (CSL) metropolitan-wide system. After that time it owned electric streetcars, along with gasoline, diesel, and propane - fueled transit busses. Purchased by the government agency Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) in 1947, it was liquidated in 1950.
In the 1850s, Chicago was growing and better public transportation was needed. Horse drawn omnibuses were shuttling passengers between several recently built interstate railroad stations for radiating lines like spokes of a wheel by 1853, but city/town streets, roads and turnpikes were often muddy, rutted and potholed with travel very difficult. In 1858, omnibus operator Frank Parmelee and a group of investors were awarded a city franchise for a rail horsecar line, but legal challenges caused them to seek a state charter instead. On February 14, 1859, the Chicago City Railway Company (C.C.Ry.) was incorporated and in two months horsecars were running on State Street between Randolph and 12th Streets.
The horsecars were a success from the start. The smooth rail and reduced rolling resistance allowed larger cars to be used in all weather. A typical car was 18 ft (5.49 m) long, 7 ft (2.13 m) wide, and could carry 20 passengers.
Although horsecar lines were inexpensive to build, they were expensive to operate. Horses could be up to 2⁄3 of the value of a company. They were expensive to buy, needed people to maintain them, were subject to illness, and made a huge amount of manure/waste. By 1880, the C.C.Ry. was looking for a better, mechanical replacement.
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