Charlottesville and University Street Railway Company
The Charlottesville City & Suburban Railway Company began operating in 1887 with a five-mile network of rails in Charlottesville. [1] The company merged with the Charlottesville City & Suburban Railway Company in 1896. [2]. The service stopped operations in 1935. [3]
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History
Delegate John Wood Jr. introduced legislation in 1866 to form the company as one that would operate horse-drawn vehicles. This passed on January 15, 1867. There were eleven people named to the Board. While the Charlottesville Chronicle reported this formation, there was little activity for many years. [4]
Initial incorporators
- John T. Antrim
- Edward Benner
- James Lawrence Cabell
- William Lynn Cochran
- John Staige Davis
- B.C. Flannagan
- Joseph W. Lipop
- John Barbee Minor
- John L. O'Neale
- Francis Henney Smith
- John Wood Jr.
Slow start
In 1871, new introduction was adopted by the General Assembly that allowed the railway to cross the tracks of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway. However, the idea did not come to fruition despite selling shares. A third attempt to move forward also fizzled despite getting new incorporators in an 1886 amendment to the incorporation. [4]
On October 8, 1886, Council granted a franchise to Robert Poore Valentine to run a street railway for a route "From west end of Main [Street] along Main ... to the C. & O. Depot, thence along 2nd Street [Seventh Street East] to High, thence along High to School [First Street] or Hill [Second Street West], thence to Main." The route was altered slightly to use South Street instead of the steep portion of Main Street up Vinegar Hill. This fourth amendment, however, was not granted rights to cross the C&O tracks. Along the incorporators was Alphonso Dix Payne. [4]
Construction began on May 9, 1887 with experienced railroad contractor Albert Gentry in charge of the work. The initial route ran from a point to the east of Fifth Street East to east of the C&O's at-grade crossing on West Main Street. [4]
The work was completed in 35 days and the first test took place on June 11, 1887 with three closed-cars with four wheels pulled by houses. Regular service began on June 14, 1887 at five cents a ride with three cents for schoolchildren. There were reports of some horses being frightened by the new transportation technology. Each car was pulled by one horse and the company began with ten. The system transferred to mules in 1891. A horse was needed to climb Vinegar Hill. [4]
An early issue was protrusion of the railways from the street due to stormwater, causing a gap to form that became a hazard for pedestrians. At one point in October 1888, City Council adopted a resolution ordering the City Attorney to begin proceedings to terminate the franchise if the situation was not resolved.
Valentine offered to share the costs of regrading Vinegar Hill but Council rejected the proposal. [4]
Expansion
References
- ↑ Web. Virginia Interurbans and Streetcar Railroads, retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ↑ Web. Getting Around: Transportation in Turn-of-the-Century Charlottesville and Albemarle, Charlottesville Historical Society, Charlottesville Area Transit, retrieved Nov 18, 2011.
- ↑ Web. Streetcar on Main Street, 1920's, Dave Norris, retrieved March 12, 2012.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 Book. Charlottesville’s Street Railway System and its Entrepreneurs, 1866-1936 (1980), Jefferson Randolph Kean, (George Mason University Master’s Thesis, retrieved January 24, 2026.