Friends of Philadelphia Trolleys
A non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation and restoration of trolley cars from the Philadelphia area
FPT Director Harry Donahue, at right, recently presented a check for $5,000 to Pennsylvania Trolley Museum Executive Director Scott Becker for the restoration of Philadelphia Transportation Co. 8042.
This donation will be double-matched by Washington County Cares and 20th Century Electric Rail.
PTM volunteers also have rebuilt 8042′ s controller as part of the work, as seen here.
Philadelphia Transportation Co. 2168 is seen working southbound along Route 47 on 6th Street in June 1967 (Jim Golhopher photo).
Today she’s a gleaming museum exhibit in Baltimore, resplendent in a beautiful recreation of SEPTA’s 1970s “Gulf Oil” paint scheme. But Philadelphia PCC car 2168 has had a long and colorful history — and more than one distinctive livery over the years.
Step aboard for a photographic trip through time on one of our favorite machines:
Less than a decade old, 2168 is seen at 17th & Lehigh, on Route 21 in 1956. This is the oldest photo we have seen of the car so far (ECTM collection).
It’s the banana car! 2168 is seen at Luzerne in March 1973, fresh from Courtland Shops in the short-lived yellow livery (Harry Donahue
We know not everyone loves the GOH scheme (though some of us do!) but we would be remiss if we didn’t show you a photo of 2168 wearing it. Harry Donahue captured the car northbound at 11th and Market in April 1987.
Yet another paint scheme! Here is Harry Donahue with the car in May 1995 when SEPTA’s Welcome Line service debuted.
That Welcome Line paint scheme didn’t take long to fade, unfortunately. Here we see Matt Nawn with the car at Elmwood on the occasion of a 50th anniversary charter in July 1998.
Ten years later, a much different scene. Here is 2168 at the Baltimore Streetcar Museum during Crab Fest in July 2008. The exterior restoration had only just begun, but this marked the car’s first operation at BSM after re-gauging (Harry Donahue).
And here is 2168 as we know her today. Donations from FPT members, together with the time and expertise, have transformed the car into a gorgeous museum piece that will help tell the story of Philadelphia trolleys for generations to come (Roger DuPuis).
The Spring 2018 issue of The Streamliner has arrived! Features include:
FPT members Harry Donahue, Matt Nawn and Bill Monaghan are seen with 8042 recently at PTM.
Work on Philadelphia Transportation Co. car 8042 is coming along nicely at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum.
FPT members including Harry Donahue, Matt Nawn and Bill Monaghan were able to check on its progress earlier this month while visiting the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington County, Pa. They are seen in the adjacent photo with the car, showing the extent of work on its platform thus far.
As you will recall, the 1923 Brill car is being restored with support from Friends of Philadelphia Trolleys and generous donors such as you. The car has been on display at PTM since 2005.
If you or anyone you know may be interested in helping the cause, please click this link to download and print our donation form.
Red Arrow “St. Louis” cars 14 and 24 are seen in MU operation at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum. (Bill Monaghan photo.)
In a sight that is sure to warm the hearts of Red Arrow fans, two of the system’s former St. Louis streamliners ran in multiple-unit operation last weekend at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum, and FPT is helping bring one of those cars back into shape after a period of storage.
The Friends of Philadelphia Trolleys provided a $500 grant to the museum for the preservation of Red Arrow Lines/SEPTA Car #24 on Saturday, June 2. This grant recognizes the efforts of a group of volunteers at PTM who have recently taken on this project and returned the car to operating condition and provide a funding base for further efforts in the future.
And, as noted, FPT members and other guests were treated to seeing 24, which wears SEPTA’s “Gulf Oil” paint scheme, operating in MU with sister car 14, which the museum has beautifully restored to its original livery.
FPT’s Directors are interested in continuing to support the Car 24 project. Just think of the impact if everyone on this page would send FPT $5 (or more) towards this car. We could raise $7,000 with just this simple step. Grants provided to museums for projects like this enable opportunities for matching grants from other organizations, which can lead to doubling of the money contributed by FPT.
