[PRCo] Re: Rt. 49 and Brownsville Ave. single track

[John F Bromley]

I just dug out my folding 1926 map of Pgh that unfolds to wall size (bought
on eBay cheap) which shows all the routes as well, and of course Brownsville
Av is shown meandering up the hill to Arlington Av.  What caught my eye,
when I checked the name off against Brownsville ROAD was that S. 18th St
seems to run south right across Arlington and continue to the corner of
Amanda St, where the 44 line loops (whoops, loopED).

I've seen pictures of PCCs and low-floors signed 46 Brownsville, but all
were in Tunnel Yard.  Perhaps photographers ran them up for the occasion (a
practice I would NEVER do, cough cough)?

Since I've got it unfolded, it might amuse the group to know the route names
from 1926.  For the sake of completeness I'll list even the common ones that
bear no surprises.  Here we go (according to the map, so they must be true):

1     Spring Garden Ave
2     Millvale & Etna
3     Millvale
4     Troy Hill
6     Brighton Road
7     Charles St
8     Perrysville Ave
9     Perrysville Ave to Charles St (Lewis 1926 guide shows as Perrysville
Short Line)
10   West View via Bellevue (yes it did go up East St, but shows one way
only and south into Bellevue boro as well)
11    East St
12    East St & Evergreen Rd
13    Emsworth
14    Avalon
15    Bellevue via West View (yes it did go up California but shows one way
only and south to Perrysville Av as well)
18    Woods Run
19    Western Ave
20    Reedsdale (Rebecca St)
21    Fineview (Nunnery Hill)
22    Crosstown
23    Sewickley Express (no I'm not making this stuff up)
25    Island Ave
26    West Park
27    Carnegie
30    Crafton & Ingram (listed by Lewis as Crafton-Ingram-Sheraden)
31    Sheraden & Ingram (listed by Lewis as Sheraden-Ingram-Crafton)
33    Mt Washington McGann's Corner
34    Elliott
37    Castle Shannon
38    Mt Lebanon
39    Brookline
40    Mt Washington via Tunnel
42    Dormont
43    Neeld Ave (Dormont)
44    Knoxville
47    Southern Ave & McKinley Park
48    Arlington Ave
49    Beltzhoover (editorial comment: as later up Brownsville Av and shown
by Lewis as through the tunnel with a 46 Brownsville line coming up
Brownsville Av)
50    Carson & Butler Sts (shown by Lewis as a through route to Butler &
62nd Sts)
53    Carrick
54    Carrick & Forbes St Only (shown by Lewis as Forbes & Carrick)
55    Homestead & East Pittsburgh via 2nd Ave
56    McKeesport
57    Glenwood Only
58    Greenfield Ave
60    Homestead via Shady Ave (shown by Lewis as East Liberty-Homestead)
63    Trafford City
64    Wilkinsburg & East Pittsburgh
66    Wilkinsburg via Forbes St
67    Swissvale Rankin & Braddock
68    Duquesne & McKeesport
69    Squirrel Hill
71    Center & Negley Aves
72    Bloomfield via Forbes St
73    Highland Park via 5th & Highland Av
75    Wilkinsburg, Oakland & East Liberty
76    Hamilton Ave
79    Forbes, Shady & Penn
81    Atwood St
82    Centre & Lincoln Aves
85    Wylie & Bedford Aves
86    East Liberty Express
87    Ardmore from Wilkinsburg (as I said I'm not making this up)
88    Frankstown Ave
92    Bloomfield via Penn Ave
94    Sharpsburg & Aspinwall
96    Penn & Negley Aves via Butler St
98    Glassport & Wilmerding
99    Evans Ave McKeesport

Un-numbered lines:

Homestead & Mifflin (later 65)
Homeville (actually shown as "F" on the map)

Interurban lines:

Pittsburgh, Harmony, Butler & Newcastle St Rwy
Butler Short Line
Charleroi
Washington
Oakmont & Verona

Transfer lines:

Pittsburgh & Lake Erie (later 32)
Spring Hill (later 5, shown in Lewis' 1926 guide as a through route from
Anderson & Laycock)
Superior Ave (Lewis guide shows as 13 Star)
Homestead & Kennywood Park

A note under the route list says that "after the completion of the 7th St
Bridge about June 1st, 1926 the North Side lines will be subject to change.

Another note says "the Given Numbers are identical with the Numbers on the
front of the cars."

Not shown as a separate line is 7 Charles St Transfer (as listed in the 1926
Lewis guide as 7 Star)

Not shown but listed by Lewis is Route 14 Star, the Rebecca St Transfer

Not shown but listed by Lewis is 17 Manchester

Not shown but listed by Lewis is 50 Star Carson St Transfer (to 36th)

Not shown but listed by Lewis is 53 Star Bon Air Transfer

Not shown but listed by Lewis is 29 Star Thornburg

Not shown but listed by Lewis is 84 Centre-Paulson-Larimer

Then there's the Penn Medical Office's 1926 Pittsburg (sic) Trolley & Bus
Guide which has its own spin.  In addition to 7 Charles it also has a 7-
Charles to Brightridge St, 9 is called Perrysville to Charles, they list the
Charles St Transfer without route number, a line 16-6th St Crosstown, the
Route 14 Star from Lewis simply as the Rebecca St Transfer, the Schoenville
Transfer, the Heidelberg route (finally, a guide that acknowledges it's
existence), Thornburg Transfer (but no number rather than 29),  Mt
Washington McGann's Corner but no number rather than 33, a Mt Lebanon-Castle
Shannon Transfer (38A later),  Route 41 Shiloh St (a short-working of the
40), Route 47 is simply shown as 'McKinley', the Carson St Transfer (to 36th
St) as the 30th St Transfer,  the  P&LE Transfer under its own name, a Route
59 Forbes & Carrick, the Bon Air Transfer (but not as 53), Homeville
Transfer as Homestead-Homeville, Corey Av Shuttle, a Library St Shuttle
(from Braddock Av at Library St via Library St to Bell & Jones Sts),  Route
72 as 'Bloomfield Outside Loop", 79 simply as 'Shady', a Route 89
Frankstown-15th St, Route 92 as 'Bloomfield Inside Loop' (72 and 92 were one
way only), the Verona Shuttle, 99 as 'Evans Av' rather than as earlier, plus
a complete list of night cars.

In addition to all this the PMO guide tells you how to tell unhealthy from
healthy urine, but we'll leave that for now as I've left you all with enough
to worry about.  It's a good thing I wasn't photographing in 1926 on a visit
from Toronto - I would have been weighed down by all the maps and guides and
there'd have been no room for film.

The map also lists bus lines for Pittsburgh Motor Coach (routes 1, 2, 3, 4,
5 and 7), White Star Line Motor Coach to Little Washington, Route #1, John
Callavo Motor Coach routes 1 and 2 and unidentified motor coaches to Rodi,
Unity, North Texas & Renton, Wilkinsburg Station via Frankstown Rd and
another to Delmont via Penn Av.

All for $12.50 on eBay.

I guess I'll have to find time to do a table like the color charts to sort
out all the 1926 inconsistencies.  Fun reading, though.

Enjoy. And now, back to my attempts to log in some  more of the never-ending
supply of Toronto stuff to the database.

JFB



----- Original Message -----
From: <HRBran99 at aol.com>
To: <pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org>
Sent: Wednesday, June 06, 2001 8:26 AM
Subject: [PRCo] Re: Rt. 49 and Brownsville Ave. single track


> In a message dated 6/6/01 7:18:44 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
> bob.dietrich at unisys.com writes:
>
>
> > So it appears that Arlington was Brownsville Road around 1927 (Approx
time
> > of the court proceeding that John started this with), and Arlington Ave.
by
> >
>
> Didn't the 49-BELTZHOOVER  (running on New Arlington Avenue) used to be
named
> 46-BROWNSVILLE, even in PCC days?
>
> HrB
>
>
>