No. 108 - Seashore Trolley Museum's Laconia Car Company-built Collection

In the hands of Seashore Trolley Museum members/volunteers,

Ed Dooks and his granddaughter Chelsey Pino, as they work

in unison to carefully peel away the paper from the newly

applied the Laconia Car Company decal on the side sill of the

Laconia Car Company-built, and then newly restored,

1906 electric locomotive from the Atlantic Shore Line Railways,

No. 100. Image by PWM 6-30-2009

The Laconia Car Company was located in the center of

Laconia, NH. Over the years, it expanded and took up 7 acres

of land. There were woodworking shops, foundries, set-up

shops, storehouses, and paint shops. The extensive

four-story brick building was dedicated to the iron foundry, which was

connected with the car fabrication business.

     This blog is all about the Portland-Lewiston Interurban, No. 14, Narcissus.....which was built in 1912 by the Laconia Car Company. From time to time, a blog post will extend its coverage of related information to include electric railway topics that enhance understanding of the collection of the Seashore Trolley Museum. This post will be one, in a series, that digs deeper into the Museum's collection of Laconia Car Company-built vehicles.

     Laconia Car Company was one of the important electric railway streetcar manufacturing companies at the turn of the 20th century. Seashore Trolley Museum has ten accessioned electric railway representatives from the Laconia Car Company among its collections. The Laconia collection at Seashore Trolley Museum is diverse. Starting with two early single-truck models from 1895, with a 1902, double-truck, streetcar, and, a 1904, double-truck, 15-bench, open car, a 1904 postal service/express car, a 1906 wooden interurban, a 1906 wooden steeple cab locomotive, a 1912 wooden interurban, a 1914 semi-convertible, and a 1918 semi-convertible.  Not all of these vehicles have been restored yet.

     Three of these Laconia vehicles in Seashore's collection are listed in the National Register of Historic Places; 1904 Portsmouth Dover & York Street Railway, No. 108, wooden Railway Post Office/Express, 1906 Atlantic Shore Line, No. 100, wooden Steeple Cab Locomotive, and 1912 Portland-Lewiston Interurban, No. 14 - Narcissus, wooden Interurban Coach.

     This post will focus on one of the cars acquired in 1949, by Seashore Trolley Museum, from York Utilities Company in Sanford, Maine:

1904 - No. 108 - Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway - Railway Post Office/Express

Combination Car: Railway Post Office/Express - Double/Air

Laconia Car Company - Seats:         L: 36' 8"  W: 8' 4"  Ht: 13' 0"  Wt:
Date Purchased: 1949

Laconia Car Company-built, PD & Y mail car No. 108

shown at York Beach about 1905.

Courtesy of O. R. Cummings Collection

Charles Preston, mail clerk sorting letters inside mail car 108. 

Courtesy of O. R. Cummings Collection 

     No. 108 was constructed as a Railway Post Office car, and carried the mail in closed pouches and sacks, similar to those operated on the steam railroads, with additional space provided for baggage and express. Built by Laconia in 1904 for the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway, which was part of the Atlantic Shore system from 1906 until 1917, it was regularly operated on the York Beach-Portsmouth RPO route until 1918 when the mail contract was canceled.

     With New Bedford RPO Car 34, No. 108 was used in the first-day cover release of streetcar commemorative stamps at Seashore in 1983, officiated by then-Vice President George Bush and Postmaster General William Bolger. P D & Y No. 108 has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980. 

One of the many special envelopes that were part of the 150th

Anniversary of Street Railways first day covers that were canceled

at Seashore Trolley Museum on  October 1, 1983.

Laconia Car Company-built, 1904 P D & Y No. 108 is featured here

PWM 

1904 Portsmouth Dover & York Street Railway No, 108 is portrayed in

this York County Stamp Club envelope and special cancellation stamp

September 24, 1983 - PWM

Vice-President George Prescott Bush was present at the Seashore Trolley

Museum when No. 108 was used in the first-day cover release of
streetcar commemorative stamps in 1983. PWM

     Converted to a railway maintenance line car to maintain overhead trolley wires in 1919, it was sold to the York Utilities Company in 1925. Used regularly as a line car and occasionally as a substitute locomotive by York Utilities, it was acquired by Seashore in 1949. Car 108 was used for many years as a line car at the Museum before being restored to its original configuration, mostly by volunteers.

Historic Cars: The National Collection at the Seashore Trolley Museum by Ben Minnich

No. 108 on its side in January 1918. Having read in the above text that the

U.S. Mail contract was canceled in 1918. This is probably why :) Read

the newspaper accounting below. 108 would later be converted to

an overhead line work car.

Image from O. R. Cummings' book, Atlantic Shore Line 1-1-1966

This newspaper account refers to the collapse of a small bridge. The image

above taken at the scene in January 1918 shows little of said collapse?

A typed account from the O. R. Cummings Collection

108 (left) as a line car in Sanford in 1947. Laconia Car Company-built

electric locomotive Nos. 100 (center) and 102 (far right). No. 100 also was

acquired by the Seashore Trolley Museum. 100 was completely restored

over three years 2007-2009.

Image from O. R. Cummings' book, Atlantic Shore Line 1-1-1966

Image from O. R. Cummings' book, Atlantic Shore Line 1-1-1966

The video below of No. 108 is in service at the Seashore Trolley Museum.

Click Here: Video of Theodore Santarelli de Brasch explaining the "Birth" of Seashore Trolley - 1939

Additional blog posts on Seashore Trolley Museum's Laconia Car Company-built Collection:
Click Here: No. 14 - 1912 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 38 - 1907 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 60 - 1895 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 100 - 1906 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 108 - 1904 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 235 & No. 50 - 1895 & 1902 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 4175 - 1914 Laconia Car Company-built Collection
Click Here: No. 4387 - 1918 Laconia Car Company-built Collection

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We continue the restoration work on the 1912, Narcissus, the only surviving high-speed, luxury interurban coach of the Portland-Lewiston Interurban. 

Click Here: Narcissus Restoration-Related Posts

Being more than a century old, the stately, "Elegant Ride," Narcissus, is a gem.  This shimmering precious stone of Maine transportation history is brilliantly resplendent as it emanates so many elements of history, including; time, places, people, and events, that it was coupled to, that when just a smattering of its seemingly innumerable stories are shared, the contents captivates, fascinates, then generates, interest to learn more 🙋. The majestic Narcissus is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Please consider joining the epic journey to complete the Narcissus Project by making a donation today!

Click Here: Donation Options

The restoration of this majestic icon of Maine's electric railway history is but one in a series of captivating stories containing an abundance of incredible coalition of narratives.

Click Here: History-Related Posts - Narcissus and Portland-Lewiston Interurban

     The Narcissus is featured in the national Gold Award-winning novel, Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride. The "Elegant Ride" is the Narcissus. Theodore Roosevelt was a passenger on the Narcissus on August 18, 1914, between Lewiston and Portland, Maine, while campaigning for the Progressive Party candidates.

Click Here: Bookstores and Businesses promoting the Narcissus Project

Independent book publisher, Phil Morse, holding

the Gold Book Award Winner plaque for

 the Middle Reader category for The Eric

Hoffer Book Award. Congratulations to

award-winning Maine author,

Jean M. Flahive