Denver & South Platte Ry. 1

The Birney car was designed by Charles O. Birney of Stone & Webster's engineering staff for use on the many street railway properties owned by that firm. It was also licensed to numerous carbuilders for general sales. The Birney car had a relatively small seating capacity (30-32 passengers) and was designed for one man operation. With only a single, light-weight, two axle truck, the Birney cars had a tendency to gallop on anything but the smoothest track. Some 6000 Birney cars were built from ca. 1916 - 1930, and the cars operated in many cities across the U.S., Canada and overseas. Their economical operation extended the street railway era in numerous cities. One company which acquired such cars was the Denver & South Platte Ry., which operated between Englewood and Littleton, suburbs of Denver, Colorado. This short-lived company operated two Birney cars for about 8 years, after which they were sold to the York Utilities Co. of Sanford, ME, for operation on their lines from Sanford to Springvale. The cars were renumbered 80 and 82 and were regauged from 3’ 6” to standard gauge at the company’s Town House Shop just before it was closed in 1927. YUCo. operated a fleet of eight Birney cars along with two larger cars until it closed its Main St. line in 1938, after which it retained the two ex-D&SP cars as spares until 1946. York Utilities was the residual operation of the Atlantic Shore Line, which ran a system to trolley lines in the Seashore Trolley Museum’s area, including the route now used by Seashore’s demonstration railway. Seashore acquired the two former D&SP cars, less motors, in 1946. In the 1970s, YUCo. car 80 was restored as D&SP No. 1, while car 82 has been preserved in its latter day form. Seashore used No. 1 as a shuttle car to the Highwood Barn. In 1990, Seashore loaned No. 1 to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for display at its Everett Shops Family Days. In 1991, No. 1 went to Brooklyn, NY where it appeared in Spike Lee's Malcolm X movie. Car 1 was loaned to the Valentine Museum in Richmond, VA, from 1994 to 1999. Since its return from Virginia in deteriorated condition, the museum has been in the process of strengthening and straightening its body. The Edwin S. Webster Foundation has made multiple year grant for restoration of No. 1. [See also: Curatorial History on the museum website and "Birney Car Overview" by Fred Maloney in the curatorial file.]