History That Connects Us
A day at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museums is a full sensory experience, from the ring of the bell to the hum and shake of the trolley as it rides down the tracks. Our Museum brings a unique experience to visitors of all generations, connecting us all to the past. From the moment they arrive, our visitors enter a world of timeless memories, historic innovations, and interactive discoveries.
@patrolleymuseum
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Today’s #FlashbackFriday photo features Cleveland Railway Company cars 4052, 4267 and 319, all staged at the Denison Avenue Car Barn. While we didn’t find an exact date on the image, each car is a distinctly different build style; so the fact that they were operating at the same time indicates the photo was taken later in the company’s operating history.
The Cleveland Railway Company operated public transit services in the city from 1910 to 1942; and like many large transit companies, it was born from multiple streetcar systems consolidating into one.
Local streetcar service would continue when the municipally owned Cleveland Transit System took over the city’s transit operations in 1942; but streetcars would ultimately stop running in Cleveland in the 1950s. #history #transit #Cleveland
This weekend is your last chance to see @steelcitylug’s awesome autumn LEGO display at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum! 🧱 🍂
This year’s display includes a fall festival, a Halloween parade in the city, Spooky Town, an alien invasion, and a farm.
There is also an I Spy challenge for families to enjoy together as they take in Steel City LUG’s different creations.
What was your favorite part of this year’s display? #VisitWashingtonPA #FallFun
Trick or Trolley is this weekend! 👻🍬🎃
On October 24th and 25th, dress up in your favorite costume and collect candy from our community partners! Event runs from 10 AM - 4 PM each day, and, thanks to @eqtcorp, kids ages 0-17 can participate for free!
This event is included with general admission and includes access to the entire Pennsylvania Trolley Museum. Enjoy as many trolley rides as you like, explore our exhibits, and take in @steelcitylug’s fall LEGO display!
#PennsylvaniaTrolleyMuseum #VisitWashingtonPA #ThingsToDoPittsburgh
For today’s #MuseumMonday update, we thought we’d highlight a part of the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum that’s out of sight but always hard at work: our Restoration Shop.
Did you know it can often take between 5 and 15 years to fully restore a streetcar? That’s because it takes a unique combination of skill, time, and financial support to take a non-operational piece of historic equipment and to get it back on track.
Right now we are focused on restoring three of the cars in our collection: Pittsburgh Railways M1, Philadelphia Transportation Company 8042, and Red Arrow Lines 73. We’re happy to report that work is currently progressing on each project - updates and milestones, however, remain dependent on the schedules and availability of the fantastic people driving these projects forward. We often say that the work we do is a labor of love; and slow-but-steady restorations are a perfect example of that.
We look forward to the day that these three cars are moved off of our “in process” restorations list! We also invite anyone interested in helping to return these cars to service to contact us to learn more about joining our volunteer team. Together, we can get these cars and more back on the line! #museum #history #trolley #streetcar
Today’s #ThrowbackThursday shot features Philadelphia & West Chester Traction’s car 77 (a product of J.G. Brill) making a stop at Hilltop Road during the 1960s.
The “80 cars” (as this type of car was referred to) were designed for one-man operation, equipped for high-speed running, and built with a lightweight aluminum design.
They served Philadelphia’s western suburbs for 50 years, both under the Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company name and the eventual Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company (AKA the “Red Arrow Lines”).
77’s sister car - number 78 - was acquired by our museum in September 1982; and is currently operational and regularly enjoyed by our visitors and riders.
📷: The American Rails collection.
#history #transit #trolley #streetcar
Kids can trick or treat for free at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum when you visit on October 24th and 25th! 👻🍬🎃
Dress up in your favorite costume and collect candy from our community partners during our annual Trick or Trolley weeekend. And this year, thanks to @eqtcorp, kids ages 0-17 can participate for free!
This event is included with general admission, which also includes access to our museum exhibits and unlimited trolley rides.
This weekend will also be your last chance to see @steelcitylug’s festive fall LEGO display.
See you there!
#PennsylvaniaTrolleyMuseum #ThingsToDoPittsburgh #VisitWashingtonPA
Education
The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum provides unique, exciting, and fun educational opportunities for students, educators, and life-long learners! Our museum is dedicated to sharing stories, insight, and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) themed opportunities and experiences that will bring the trolley era to life. Check out our Education page to learn about field trip opportunities, Scout workshops, summer camps, and more!
History
Take a ride into the past at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum where the trolley era is alive and well. The Museum uses daily tours, interactive exhibits, multidimensional programming, and special events throughout the year to transport visitors back in time. Our history and STEAM exhibits tell the stories of the people, places, and things that made the trolley era such an exciting and unique time to be alive!
Collection
The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum is focused on preserving and restoring our collection of antique streetcars. The Museum was founded in 1953 and has continued to conserve, preserve, and restore cars through a mostly volunteer effort. Today, we house a collection of 50 streetcars, many of which are operational and used for daily rides. Visit our Collection page to learn more about all of our different trolleys!