Tram Tuesday - Milan, Italy

This is a phantom streetcar. Board at your own risk, because you never know where it could take you. It reminds me of the title of Buñuel's movie, Illusion Travels by Streetcar.

I am not an expert on perspective, but logic tells me that the man on the left is farther away than the streetcar, therefore he should appear smaller than the people riding it--the ones that are so tiny you can't even see them. Maybe he's walking away dejected because the conductor told him he was too big to board. More likely it's a case of turn-of the century photo editing. The image probably seemed a little dull, but nothing the addition of a streetcar wouldn't fix!

It doesn't look similar to the other streetcars in the background either, but it could be that there were different kinds operating at the same time. Still, the numbering of trams wasn't introduced until 1910, and I have a feeling the base image is earlier than that.

Trams have been operating continuously since 1876 in Milan, with transitions from horse-drawn to steam-powered, and then electric. Although there were also post WWII cuts that persisted through the 1970s, the system survived. As in a number of other cities, trams have managed to regain favor in Milan resulting in a revival of tram service.

The second card shows a seemingly congested center terminus in front of the magnificent Piazza del Duomo in Milan. There was no photo editing here. They didn't even remove the wire or cable that crosses the image diagonally.

Here's the ultimate edited postcard image, showing Berlin's Nollendorfer Platz. My guess is that the street was empty on the original image. I like the final result though.

Here's the back of the card.

Tram Tuesday - Frankfurt, Germany

Trams have been operating in Frankfurt since 1872.  The tram system is alive and well and integrated with light rail (U-Bahn), suburban rail (S-Bahn) and the bus system. According to Wikipedia,  two new sections have been added to the streetcar system in the past few years and additional service will be added to serve neighborhoods with medium transit needs. The reason cited is that "trams are more attractive to the traveling public than buses and cheaper to build than underground railways." It's interesting to see trams replacing bus service, a reversal of trends in the mid 20th century.

Here are some postcards showing early views of Frankfurt with streetcars. The first two are both from about 1910, showing the same church from different angles.

The next two cards both show views of Zeil, Frankfurt's vibrant shopping street. The first one was sent in 1898, at a time when there were still horse-drawn trams, as well as steam-powered and electric ones. I can't tell which kind this one is, because it's tiny and there are some carriage horses in front of it.

On the next one, sent in 1903, you can see the overhead wires.

The last card shows an electric tram in front of the magnificent Circus Schumann, which was destroyed by Allied bombs in World War II. According to Circopedia, the U.S. Army used what was left of the building (the facade, foyer, and restaurants right behind it) until 1958.  The remains of the building were demolished in 1960.

That white object in the sky to the right of the building is a highly-stylized cloud, probably the strangest one I've seen, added by the person who tinted the card. This tinting process was also used to obscure unsightly things like overhead streetcar wires.

I love it when people write dates and document other happenings on the back of cards.  If we had been around 100 years ago, we too could have celebrated Otto's birthday at Circus Schumann.

The back of the first card looks just like the one above, but with no writing, so I won't post it. Here are the backs of cards 2, 3, and 4.

Tram Tuesday - Heidelberg, Germany

Electric trams had been around for about five years when Dr. Bine sent this card to his sister Marie. Decades later, I would board a streetcar here every day on my way home from school. There are still streetcars in Heidelberg, along with an S-Bahn and a funicular that goes up to the castle.

The message on the card (written on August 2, 1907) is a continuation from another card that I don't have. I's still interesting though:

_____ from his mother just now. She was writing from the Adler Sanitarium where Schmoll (?) placed her for 2 weeks - he treating her with Moffitt consulting. It is thus much more satisfactory to know her there as we start out on the trip to-morrow Saturday and a weight off our minds as her Los Angeles doctors were by no means as reassuring. She says Moffitt is to write to us as soon as he gets time + Schmoll is to write to Liss about her in a day or so.  Heard from Sadie yesterday. She says  Marcelle got Jeanne ___, a David Salomom- are desirous of knowing whether fish for an Isaac henry ___ Sadie says I'll take her present home later. Also says her dad sent us money. How much? 
I can't make out the last few lines at all.

Here's another card Dr. Bine sent from Heidelberg.

The message reads:

Many a time I ____ I turn up the Bunsenstr. which leads up the RohrbachStr. to the GaisburgStr. Where you see the word "Hotel" stands the Hotel pension "Alt Heidelberg", a more or less modern Pension. That is the Rohrbacj Str. + up that last block to the end + then a block to the right + we are home. You can thus begin to get an idea of where we have been living. Here are the backs of the cards in the same order. 

For more posts on Dr. Bine, Click HERE. 
Another Dr. Bine post (probably the last) coming soon.

Mt. Lowe Railway, California

Just looking at this gives me vertigo.

You may remember Mt. Lowe from a previous post on Echo Mountain that showed a horse-drawn tram on a rather steep incline. You can read all about the Mt. Lowe Railway here. This card shows the upper part of the railway, above the Mt. Lowe Incline on the way to the Alpine Tavern.

The railway was plagued with problems, and there's little trace of it anymore, but it must have been a fun trip for people who lived close enough to Pasadena to take the ride. Here's a card showing the Great Incline and the funicular that transported passengers up Echo Mountain.

Here are the backs of the cards in the same order. The first one was written on September 1, 1930 and mentions crossing 18 bridges besides this circular bridge.

Tram Tuesday - Glasgow, Scotland

I wish the cards I have showed close-ups of the trams in Glasgow. They don't, but they still provide an interesting view. After you look at these, be sure to visit Roger Dupuis' blog, Tram Stops Here, where he has put together an extensive post on Glasgow trams and restored cars.

I tried to get some close-up of details, but the cards are obviously not high resolution.  It's enough detail to show that the tram at Gearge Square is horse drawn though and the one on Jamaica Bridge is electric

Tram Tuesday - Johannesburg, South Africa

This card does not show us the ideal close-up view of the tram, but it's interesting to me because it is an open-air horse-drawn tram.

The card was sent in 1906, the very year the system was converted to electricity. Unlike this rather primitive tram, some of the electric ones were colorful double-deck models, but there were also more upscale and enclosed horse-drawn trams. If you look closely, you can see a few nicely-dressed ladies with hats sitting towards the front of the tram, but it's impossible to tell if they're black or white. Was this a lower-class tram for blacks? Early on, trams in South Africa were racially segregated along with most other facilities and services.

Here's a picture I took at a performance in South Africa during the days of Apartheid.

The sender of this card (N. Claase) saved postage by sending this card without a message, thus qualifying as printed matter.

Tram Tuesday - Hannover, Germany

This unassuming card is special in a couple of ways. For one thing it is a very early card, sent in 1899, and showing an electric tram.  Although there is no message, the recipient and the story surrounding him, manage to trump the card itself.

The other element that's unusual is the City of Hannover's tram service. Hannover started out like many cities with horse-drawn trams, transitioning to electric trams. Bus service was also introduced for rural routes, but the tram service remained until the real transition, to light rail, started taking place in 1975. Some of Hannover's tram cars are now transporting passengers in Budapest, Hungary.

I am curious about the sender of the card. There is no message, but there appears to be a name, "Eustacie", on the front of the card. The recipient is Monsieur Philippe de Las Cases, at the Château de la Baume in Marvejols, Lozere, France. I occasionally check to see if I can find anything about the recipients of the cards I post. I don't usually find houses like this, but this is where Philippe lived:

Source

These days the château is open to visitors. You can see more photographs and read the history (in French) at this site.

Here's what I know about Philippe. He was born in 1881 and wrote a book on the rustic art of Brittany. His father was Emmanuel, Count de Las Cases and a Senator of the 3rd French Republic.  Philippe's great uncle, was also Count Emmanuel (1766-1842), a hugely successful atlas maker, and a great admirer of Napoleon Bonaparte.  The count accompanied Napoléon on his exile to St. Helena, where he acted as his secretary, recording his thoughts and later memorializing them in Mémorial de Ste Hélène. 

Apparently the count also made efforts to teach Napoleon English during their time in St. Helena. Earlier this year a letter that Napoleon wrote to the count, in very broken English, was being auctioned in June, 2012 and was expected to fetch £65,000. Instead, it ended up selling for £325,000.

Part of the château is dedicated to the time spent at St. Helena and some of the memories and souvenirs from the trip.

Here's the back of the card with a big inky fingerprint.

Tram Tuesday - Belfast, Northern Ireland

Belfast, Northern Ireland had horse-drawn trams in 1872, but by 1905 (about the time this photo was taken), they had changed to electric power. These trams did have overhead wires, but you can't see them because the people who colored the cards often erased whatever they could of the wires for aesthetic reasons. I don't think anyone ever thought to erase horses from the earlier photos.

Here's a closer view of the trams.

The card was sent to Master Alexander Seavey of Eugene, Oregon in 1910. Little Alexander would have been just over two years old at the time. He was born into an Oregon family with pioneer roots. His father, James Walter, was a hops farmer who married Bessie Kelly. Bessie's father John came from Dublin, Ireland, so the aunt who wrote this card may have been a relative of his.

The message is very sweet:

Belfast Ireland

April 5 -1910

My Dear little Boy -

Tell Mamma that Aunt Trey (Tray?) got her letter yesterday and will write her next Sunday. I was so glad to hear  all the nice things about you and so happy to hear in her other letter that you could say my name -  Don't forget it, please - It is just four months today since I saw you last. I stole upstairs and you were asleep in your little bed. How do you like the looks of these two-story cars? Not so much as your own new "chu-chu" car I know. Wish you bring it over to take me riding. Kiss Mamma, Papa, Aunt Kate, Elizabeth, W___, Aunt Ida for me, and tell everyone to compliment you.

Lots of love from Aunt Trey

René Bine - Kiss the Hand

Today we have another card from René Bine, sent to his sister Marie and parents back in San Francisco in November 1904. I have posted a number of other cards from René during his time studying medicine at the University of Vienna. I tend to focus on the messages written on these cards, but the cards themselves are also beautiful, and often include streetcars, such as the horse-drawn one on this card.

Here's a close-up of the tram with a Kodak advertisement on the back and a sign for a Zahnarzt (dentist) office on the corner.

The message on this card is a continuation from a previous card that I don't seem to have, although I do have a few others that express frustration with the cultural differences and bureaucracy in Vienna. This one, in which René recounts the comments of Professor Alois Monti, is particularly interesting though!

Every man of sense here laughs at their nonsensical customs. But the people, per se, are sensible. When a big chief comes in hospital, e.g. kids salute him by "Kiss the hand". When he leaves ditto. When sick kid is brought into clinic they do the act and as Professor Monti, one of the greatest kid specialists here says, "they spit the influenza bug, or slobber the germs of diphtheria on your hand + you rub them into your mustache the next minute!

But in spite of all Vienna peculiarities, for us it has its charms which we enjoy; its peculiarities make us fat from laughing at them, so thy too have their good features, you see.

Work continues as usual to be more than interesting and we manage to keep busy, though next month we intend to slacken our pace, to get at least 1 hour a day to read up things. Otherwise no news. regards to all the folks, 

kisses to you all,

Your loving brother and son,

René

Here's the back of the card.

If you're interested in reading more of René Bine's correspondence, go to the bottom of the webpage and click on the tag for Dr. René Bine.

Tram Tuesday - Durban, South Africa

Durban, South Africa had horse-drawn trams in 1880,  but converted to electricity in 1902. They had some fabulous-looking double-deck cars. In the mid-thirties, Durban started transitioning to trolleybuses, with the last electric trams running in 1949.  There is a great website with a section on the history of public transport in Durban written by Allan Jackson. In addition to a detailed history, he includes some very nice old photos of Durban's trams.

This card doesn't show a clear view of the tram itself, but it is a lively street scene. Here's a closer view of the tram.

The card was written in 1927, but the photo itself appears to be earlier, maybe 1910. At first glance I assumed the message was written in Afrikaans, but it isn't. My guess is that it's Danish, but I don't know for sure. Can anyone out there read this?

Here is a translation, courtesy of Helen in Denmark. Thanks Helen.

Septbr 4 - 1927
Dearest Gusta! 

You and the others are most welcome here for a small dinner this coming Saturday, the 8. of this month; can you be here between 6 pm and 6.30 pm, please not later; you know the way, don't you? Everything is fine with us - hope to see you, your husband, Beate and the two youngsters, I hope we can have a good time together. We have a dinner invitation today, so I will conclude with the warmest regards to you all from your [snuggling?] [a nickname referring to a child being put to bed possibly with a good night song] mother.

Tram Tuesday - Swansea, Wales

Along with the tram, this card has some great little details of High Street in Swansea including the shops of Richard Lewis, Milliner, and Jack Lewis (his brother?), as well as the Royal Hotel.

We can also see the sign for Myrddin Davies, Cash Chemist. It also appears that there is a bit of horse manure on the right side of the road.

Perhaps the young girl is shielding her nose from the smell.

Swansea has horse trams in 1878. Steam-powered trams were used briefly before the switch was made to electric traction in 1900, however the street tram system was closed in preference to buses in 1937. Recently there has been talk of reintroducing trams in Swansea. There have also been efforts to refurbish High Street and encourage mixed use developments. High Street today looks nothing like the picture above since the buildings surrounding High Street were destroyed by German bombs in World War II.

Here's the back of the card, sent to Mrs. C.E. Potter of Potter, Kansas in 1926, with the following message:

7-31-26

This from the ____ lady on the train returning from ______.

We had a most delightful voyage across - seven days on the ocean blue - It was grand -Will be traveling to Scotland + France before we return Sept 25th date of returning sail.

Fraternally - Mrs Evan Davis

Topeka

The recipient of the card was likely Charlotte Estelle Potter.
It's worth noting that the post office in Potter, Kansas opened in 1865. It was threatened with closure back in the 1970s, but didn't actually close until 2009. In 1976, Wendall Anschutz filmed a travelogue piece on Potter and its post office.

Tram Tuesday - Melbourne, Australia

I was surprised to learn that  Melbourne, Australia has the largest tram network in the world. That's right, larger than St. Petersburg or Berlin, with 250 km of track, 487 trams, and 30 routes. The tram system in Melbourne has been around since 1884 and currently provides over 182 million passenger trips per year.

In contrast to many places that had mostly horse-drawn trams in the early years, Melbourne focused on a cable-drawn system before changing completely to electricity in 1940.

There is no message on the back of the card, but here's a close-up.

Tram Tuesday - Schenectady, NY

Schenectady, New York had a streetcar system from 1886 until 1946. General Electric bought the streetcar company in 1896 and then set up a GE manufacturing plant in Schenectady. They then extended the streetcar loop to the GE plant to transport their 3,000+ employees to and from work.

There was also an electric interurban that brought people into Schenectady from the smaller towns of Gloversville, Johnstown, Amsterdam, and Scotia where they could then get on the New York Central train. Traveling glove salesmen from Gloversville used the trains to make their sales calls.

This view shows State Street and the Lorraine Block, demolished in the 1960s. The little building next to it may have been some kind of entertainment venue; there are two signs advertising Lew Dockstader, a Vaudeville entertainer. There's also a big sign for Stoll Famous Lager.

 The message on the front of the card, sent to Miss Lillian Wyckoff in 1907 reads:

I am having a dandy time. my address is 8 Romeyn Pl Schenectady N.Y. with this about the entertainment.

Your friend Nettie

Here's the back of the card.