Public transit was first provided by horse car lines of the Citizen's Railway Company operating on St. Charles Road west from Grand Avenue about 1870. In October, 1878, the West End Narrow Gauge Railway, a steam line, began operations from a terminus near Grand and Olive. It ran west through the Grande Prairie area, following the route which was later used by the Hodiamont street car line. .

In the early 1890's most of the city's street railways, including these lines were electrified. By the time of the transit company consolidation in 1899, trolley car lines were operating on such cross-town lines as Taylor, Sarah, Vandeventer and Grand, as well as on east-west lines including Delmar, Hodiamont, Page, Wellston and the Cass line on St. Louis Avenue. Conversion to motor buses started in the 1950's.

This is an article of tribute to our favorite streetcar line. Not only  favorite line, but one that was known all over the United States. In 1966 the streetcar obituary actually made the New York Times and Chicago Tribune! 

It's a reminder to the older generation of how good it was growing up in an suburban area with a terrific (nearly pollution free) mass transit system. This was before the car industry and oil companies paid cities to remove the tracks and replace the streetcars with high carbon producing (foul smelling) buses.

There was no need for horses, wagons, stables, automobiles or garages with all of their accompanying expenses and waste.   We had an excellent mass transit system that worked and it was inexpensive.  You could ride anywhere for a dime, less, if you had a student pass. That was "Cool", long before we knew the word "Cool".

My first set of "wheels" was a bicycle giving me freedom to fly on a magic carpet. To travel with friends, discovering the wonders of the two or three miles from home.  As we got older our next set of "wheels" was not an automobile, It was the streetcar.  We had many different choices from our Wellston Terminal; all of them took us to places of wonder.  My own favorite line was route #15, Hodiamont car.

During our pre-teen years, the family would ride the Hodiamont street car to see Christmas displays in the department store windows downtown. We saw electric trains roaring around on the track, disappearing into a tunnel, only to appear again emerging from another tunnel. We saw North Pole elves that moved, and laughed.  Of course, we saw all the toys and dolls in the world displayed and would mention what we would like in Santa's ear.

Families rode the Hodiamont downtown and stood on the sidewalks or sat on the curbs just to watch the "Veiled Prophet" parade.

As early as the sixth and seventh grades, we were considered old enough to travel safely on our public transportation system by ourselves. We would travel with classmates to Forest Park and visit the Art Museum or look at the Lucky Lindbergh items on display at the Jefferson Memorial. Both places required several visits, as there was too much to absorb in one visit. All this was "free" - paid for and maintained with tax dollars or donations, not some "private corporation" charging admission. The Zoo was free too! Our only expense was the two dimes, one to go and one to come home. We also drank water from drinking fountains that were free.  We didn’t carry water bottles containing purchased tap water. 

On some special occasions when the movie you "had to see", was at one of the big downtown theatres, you might go on dates as a group to see the show, usually as couples paired within the group.  We behaved very well, I remember, always above the level that would cause the most timid of us any embarrassment. The girls were "ladies" and the "boys" were "gentlemen".  Maybe we were putting on an act as in a play, but I feel that is just the way it was.

Now, my favorite memory of the #15 Hodiamont streetcar when I was on "the date", as in one boy with one girl on their first date together!  Easter 1946!  That story is here:  It's gone, but not forgotten, the memories still are with us.    

The lasting friendships and the trips we made are not forgotten, we review them at every class reunion, in letters and in the miracle of this age, EMAIL. (Thanks again, Vint Cerf and Bill Gates).

We miss you and all that you were to us.