February 29, 2004
A. Phillip Randolph SIS
A. Philip Randolph SIS
RTA’s massive Randolph SIS (Storage, Inspection, Service) facility, located at Canal and N. Gayoso Streets, is the permanent home for the streetcars of the Canal and Riverfront lines.
The Randolph facility was constructed on the site of the original Canal Street barn, first built in 1861 by the New Orleans City Railroad Company. The original barn serviced the Canal line throughout its entire lifespan, and was converted fully to a bus facility in 1964. The building was torn down in 1992 and the current facility was constructed.
Posted by Edward J. Branley at 6:01 PM | TrackBack
February 15, 2004
Runnin' Down St. Charles
The prototype car, 2001, making the trip from Carrollton Station on Willow down to Canal Street. The St. Charles Avenue neutral ground is prime real estate during Carnival, when families stake out spots for parade viewing. Parades that start Uptown usually do so on Napoleon Avenue, turning onto St. Charles from there. They go down St. Charles through Lee Circle, then continue to Canal. St. Charles Avenue from Lee Circle to Canal is usually one-way going outbound, but the parades ignore this. When they reach Canal, some parades turn lakebound, some riverbound, depending on whether the parade ends at the Municipal Auditorium or the Convention Center.
The Von Dullen cars on the Canal line have their own barn at the Randolph SIS facility in Mid-City, but Carrollton Station will still be “streetcar headquarters.”
Posted by Edward J. Branley at 5:57 PM | TrackBack
February 2, 2004
Feature Photo: Mardi Gras Mambo...1890s Style
Mardi Gras Mambo...1890s Style...
Let’s kick off the Feature Photo here on CanalStreetCar.com with an old shot. I wish I had this one for the book. This is Canal and Camp Streets from the late 1880s or early 1890s. Three bobtail mule cars are visible in the foreground. There’s a starter’s house on the right, in between the two cars on that side. The car on the left, No. 18, has “MAGAZINE ST.” painted on the side. There were two companies that ran streetcars on Magazine Street. The New Orleans and Carrollton Railroad Co. (the St. Charles Avenue people), and the Jefferson City Railroad Co. The JCRR operation ran from 1864 to 1881, so this car would belong to the NO&CRR if the photo dating is accurate. The NO&CRR opened their Magazine line in 1861 and it ran until 1948, when NOPSI replaced the streetcars with trolley coaches.
The parade going by is most likely Rex, since the other parades prior to the 1900s were night spectacles.
I purchased a print of this photo off of eBay, so I can’t speak to its origins. In fact, because of that I probably wouldn’t have included it in the book even if I would have had it before deadline. If anyone has more info on the photo itself, please let me know.