1896: Trolley Pass

HAMILTON TOWNSHIP PUBLIC LIBRARY LOCAL HISTORY COLLECTION

The Trenton Passenger Railway Company began trolley service to South Broad Street and Harrison Avenue in 1893.   This provided access to Spring Lake and White City Parks for Trenton residents. I wonder if Samuel Smith used this pass for that purpose?

1895: Turning the Trolley

Trenton Times, Sunday, December 1, 1895

The curve mentioned was the turn around at Harrison Avenue used by the trolley to return to Trenton after dropping off and picking up people visiting Spring Lake Park.  The curve was described as a horseshoe curve in a news item published in August 1894.

1893: Trolley Service Begins

Trenton Evening Times. May 27, 1893

Trolley service played an integral part in the development of BSP, Spring Lake Park and eventually White City Park.  The Overlook House was known as the Casino Restaurant in  park days and is commonly known today as the White City Mansion.  Thousands of patrons utilized  trolley transportation to White City Amusement Park during its existence.  



1931: Those Poles

Trenton Evening Times, October 15, 1931

By 1935 the dangerous trolley poles were removed from the center of South Broad Street and the islands separating the north and south traffic lanes were constructed.

Camden and Trenton Railway traverses BSP

The John Stephenson Company of Elizabeth, NJ provided cars such as this wood interurban to the Camden and Trenton Railway.

This map shows the route of the Camden and Trenton Railway. The shaded area depicts the location of White City Amusement Park.

In December 1900, the Camden and Trenton Railway applied to the Hamilton Township Committee for permission to extend track for a junction with existing trackage north of Crosswicks Creek, via private right-of-way, in a northwesterly direction along the line of the present Emeline and Independence Avenues. The proposed route turned northeast onto Park Avenue for three blocks then northeast again along Schiller Avenue. A short stretch of private right-of-way carried the proposed routing to the Hamilton-Trenton boundary at Lalor Street. The Trenton extension was completed in April 1901 and on Wednesday, May 1, 1901, the first trip was made over the new trackage. Suffering from what today would be known as deferred maintenance, the Camden and Trenton Railway was in run-down condition when a new company, The Riverside Traction Company, took over in 1910. Improvements made the service more dependable and the Riverside line enjoyed a period of relative prosperity until automobiles began to lure passengers away from the trolleys in the 1920s.

Source: The Riverside Line, The Story of the Camden and Trenton Railway by Barker Gummere