Page:Shore Line Electric Railway Predecessor Companies 1961.pdf/7

Rolling Stock

THE ORIGINAL rolling stock of the Groton & Stonington Street Railway included 8 double truck closed cars, Nos. 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28 and 30; four 13-bench double truck opens. Nos. 15, 17,19 and 21; four 15-bench double truck opens, Nos. 23. 25, 27 and 29, all built by the Jewett Car Company: a Taunton double truck snow plow, and a work car.

Equipment of the passenger cars included Peckham trucks on the 18CX MCB type, four Westinghouse sec 140 h pi motors and K6 controllers, Ham sand boxes. Barbour-Stockwell cast-iron brake shoes. Climax combination arc and incandescent headlights and Wilson trolley retrievers. The eight closed cars all had 29 ft. 4 in bodies and measured 40 ft. overall. They had railroad roofs, five large double windows with Florentine glass in the upper sashes on each side, and green plush seats. Their original double steps were later replaced by single steps because the farmer were repeatedly smashed on platforms at waiting stations. The open cars had monitor roots. All were painted green and were equipped with large drop tenders.

Two more 15-bench opens, Nos. 31 and 33, were added in 1906. According to the U. S. street and Electric Railway Census of 1907, the equipment of the Groton & Stonington included 8 closed cars, 10 open ears. one express car and the snow plow. There were 19 4-motor cars and one 2—motor car; 18 cars had air brakes.

The express car, No 1. was a double truck ear with a flat arch roof and was lettered "Groton & Stonington St. Ry. Co. Express." A company monogrm was carried at each end of :he side panels on closed cars and both the open and closed cars had "New London and Westerly" lettered on their dashers.

Another express car was added a year or two later. Both were built hy Marquardt Brothers at Groton in the railways shops at Mystic.

Operations

THE EARLIEST TIMETABLE of the Groton & Stonington Street Railway available is that in the 1909 edition of the Trolley Wayfinder and this indicates that half hourly service was provided all day between Groton and Westerly, the trip having in running time of one hour and 25 minutes. Three minutes additional were required for the ferry crossing of the Thames River between Groton and New London.

(The New London Ferry terminal was at the foot of the Parade, behind the New York. New Haven & Hartford Railroad Station: operating procedures were outlined in some detail in the street Railway Journal article mentioned previously:

All dispatching is cariied on by telephone, with headquarters at Mystic. Telephone boxes are located at each of the five turnouts, at the ends of the line and at the Weoueteouoek Casino. The turnouts. are about 15 minutes apart The telephones used are of the special outdoor type, No. 278-A. made by the Western Electric company. They are so constructed that the key used to open the box cannot be taken out until the telephone door is shut

The dispatcher has in his office a board containing a number of pegs corresponing to the different conductors on the line, these pegs being moved from point to point as the cars advance. When a conductor reaches a turnout. he telephones the dispatcher, who orders him to go ahead if all is well. If there has been any delay, ehe dispatcher uses a second board which is set sor a difference in time of 30 minutes. The conductors are given orders to wait at a turnout until they meet a certain car. In case two cars are following one another in the same direction between the same turnouts, the car going the other way is not permitted to go

EXPRESS CAR of the Groton & Stonington Street Railway Company as photographed in Mystic about 191O.