The
Calumet Electric Street Railway Company was one of two streetcar
companies in the far southern part of Chicago. It began operation in 1890
and merged with its competitor, the South Chicago City Railway Company,
in 1908. A map published for a transit company as long ago as yours is
a rarity. More often, public information about local transit then was in
city guidebooks.
The dotted red line on your map is a route built as the Pullman Railway by the Pullman Company, which built streetcars as well as its well-known railroad cars. The Pullman Railway was a demonstration line for its streetcars as well as a transportation facility. It later became part of the Calumet Electric.
The cable connection shown in green on your map
is just one of about a dozen cable car lines in Chicago, a technology which
is certainly better known at San Francisco. The elevated railroad
route on the map was originally (in 1893) powered by small steam locomotives.
It's still operated today by the Chicago Transit Authority--by electricity,
of course.
All in all, your map is a splendid piece of history!
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Other 1800's Ephemera / Images