The Figure-Eight of Lewiston by O.R. Cummings

January 1957 issue of the Bates Alumnus magazine

included this article by the late Seashore Trolley Museum

historian and prolific electric railway lines author, 

O. R. Cummings. Image from the Bates Alumnus.

Thank you to Bates College Muskie Archives for sharing with us, this copy of O. R. Cummings' story on the "Figure-Eight" published in the Bates Alumnus,  January 1957. O. R. Cummings was the Seashore Trolley Museum's historian for decades and published fifty books or more on electric railways in New England. O. R. passed away in 2013 and is greatly missed by this blogger and all who knew him in the historic railway circles.

     O. R. Cummings, better known as "Dick," was a member of the Class of 1944 at Bates until World War II tore him away from his studies. He later graduated from the Bentley School of Accounting and Finance in Boston and joined the staff of the Newburyport, Mass., Daily News. Last April he moved to Manchester, NH, Union-Leader, where he is employed as a rewrite-man.

     Dick is the official historian of the New England Electric Railway Historical Society, Inc., owner of the Seashore Electric Railway trolley museum at Kennebunkport, and the author of several histories of Maine electric railways, including the Portland-Lewiston Interurban; the Atlantic Shore Line Railway; the Rockland, Thomaston, and Camden Street Railway; and the Biddeford and Saco Railroad. His history of the Portland Railroad system is now in the process of publication and he is working on a two-part history of the Lewiston, Augusta, and  Waterville Street Railway.

     Dick is the son of Mary Audley Cummings, '12, who makes her home in Newburyport.

     The time was September 1940, and at the corner of Campus Avenue and College Street, more than a hundred members of the Class of 1944 waited for the start of the annual Stanton Ride.

     Soon, with a shriek of whistles as they passed John Bertram Hall, two large trolley cars came lurching down Campus Avenue and with a hiss of air and the grinding of brakes, stopped in front of the freshman group. Within a few minutes, everyone was aboard and the cars started, rounding the sharp, curve onto College Street and heading for Lake Auburn.

Last Trip 1941 - Motorman-Conductor Mr. Turgeon (?)

for many years. Courtesy Androscoggin Historical Society

     

Last Ride by Trolley

     Now, the Stanton Ride has been a regular event of Freshman Week since it was established by the late Professor "Uncle Johnny" Stanton way back before the turn of the century. But the 1940 trip had special significance, for it marked the last time that the traditional trolleys were used for transportation on the annual outing. When September 1941 rolled around and the Class of 1945 arrived on the Bates campus, the ancient streetcars in Lewiston and Auburn had been replaced by shiny new buses.

Figure-Eight map from O.R Cummings 1963 publication,

"Lewiston, Augusta, & Waterville Street Railway.

PWM Collection

     The passing of the trolleys, in addition to ending one of the traditions of the Stanton Ride, also meant goodbye to the good old "Figure Eight," the line which had served the Bates campus, first with horsecars and later with electrics, for half a century. The new buses ran directly to the College from downtown Lewiston, looping around campus via College and Russell streets and Central and Campus avenues instead of following the old circuit through Lisbon, Pine, and Sabattus streets and down Campus Avenue.

Interior of an electric car probably Figure 8, Last Trip 1941

Image courtesy Androscoggin Historical Society

Lewiston at Hub of Electric Lines

     It should be noted here and now that in the heydey of the trolley, the twin cities of Lewiston and Auburn were the hub of an extensive network of electric railway lines through south-central Maine. The Lewiston, Augusta, and Waterville Street Railway, the largest system in the state, extended from Lewiston to Brunswick and Bath, to Augusta and Waterville, to Mechanic Falls, and to Turner, while the luxurious Portland-Lewiston Interurban provided direct service from Union Square, Lewiston, to Monument Square, Portland.

LA&W St. Rwy

Courtesy Androscoggin

Historical Society

LA&W St. Rwy Motoman

PWM Image

Three Maine Colleges Were Linked

     The Lewiston, Augusta, and Waterville system, incidentally, served three of Maine's four colleges - Bates, Bowdoin, and Colby - and it would have been possible to ride to Lewiston all the way to the University of Maine had a proposed line between Waterville and Bangor ever been built.

     Both Bates and Bowdoin frequently chartered special cars to convey athletic teams and student rooters from one college to the other as the distance was only twenty miles - a ninety-minute ride. Trips to Colby, however, were usually made by steam railroad because of the distance, fifty-five miles, and the three hours (of time) by trolley. Moreover, the Maine Central station in Waterville was practically in the backyard of the old Colby campus.

Trolleys Were Popular for Class Rides

     In the days when each Bates class took an annual trip, many of the journeys were made by trolley to such places as Merrymeeting Park in Brunswick, New Meadows Inn in West Bath, Tacoma Inn at Litchfield, Island Park on Cobbosseecontee in East Winthrop, near Augusta, and Casco Castle Park in South Freeport, on the trolley line between Brunswick and Portland.

     Tacoma Inn, incidentally, was noted for its bountiful dollar dinners and if a student became weary of the fare at the Commons or Rand Hall, he or she had only to ride up to Tacoma for a repast fit for a king. The round-trip trolley fare from Lewiston added another fifty cents to the cost, but the meal was well worth it.

All for a Nickel Fare!

     Getting back to Figure Eight, it provided a convenient way for Bates students to enjoy a cooling ride before "hitting the books" on a hot early fall or late spring evening. The round-trip through Lewiston and Auburn took a half hour and the fare was a nickel. Open bench cars were used on the line in the days before the First World War, and there was always a scramble for the front or rear seat where, out of sight of the rest of the passengers, a student, and his favorite coed could engage in a little discreet handholding.

Lisbon Street, Lewiston at night.

Postcard Collection of PWM

     In connection with Figure Eight, we recall a story told us by a Bates graduate many years ago. It appears that she was being initiated into a "top-secret" girls' sorority on campus and as part of her initiation, she was required to signal a Figure Eight car to stop in front of Milliken House. When the car stopped, she put her foot on the running board, untied and tied her shoe, and then stepped back, thanking the motorman and conductor for their courtesy. Trolley car crews always accepted such antics in good spirits and "anything the college kids did was all right."

Remember Lake Auburn?

     Another favorite trip of college students in the heydey of the trolley was to Lake Grove Park on the shore of Lake Auburn in East Auburn. This park, with its summer theatre and other amusements, was once a favorite recreation spot for residents of the Twin Cities. Bates people weren't supposed to go there unless accompanied by a proper chaperone, but they'd occasionally take a chance on Saturday afternoons and ride out to Lake Grove. Canoes were available for hire and there was nothing more enjoyable than a paddle around the lake, provided, of course, that a feller had his best girl along.

Lake Grove, Auburn

Postcard Collection of PWM

And East Auburn Grange Hall?

     Near Lake Grove Park was the East Auburn Grange Hall and some members of at least one Bates class occasionally hired the place for a Saturday afternoon dance during the days when tripping the light fantastic was forbidden on the college campus. The group made the trip to and from East Auburn by trolley and the girls, in particular, were always certain to be back on campus by six o'clock in time for the evening meal at Rand Hall. Their absence would have taken a lot of explaining.

     Off-campus students found the trolleys convenient and easy to ride distances. The winter months were the worst for such commuters, of course, for occasionally the trolley lines in the outlying areas would be blocked by snowdrifts and the trolleys couldn't run until the tracks were cleared. At such times, if a student were stranded at College, there were always emergency accommodations, but if he or she were stranded at home, there was a valid excuse for missing classes.

Coal for Heating Plant Delivered by Trolley

     One of the most valuable services performed for Bates by the street railway was the hauling of coal from Bath to the College's heating plant behind Hathorn Hall. Rails were laid from Campus Avenue along Bardwell Street and the back of Hedge Lab to the plant. The fuel was brought in large gondola cars which could dump their loads directly into the coal bunkers at the college. Coal delivery by trolley ended after the Bath streetcar line was abandoned in 1937 and the tracks on Bardwell Street were removed.

     We mentioned the Portland-Lewiston Interurban earlier in this story and it might well be pointed out that the builder of the line was W. Scott Libbey, a Lewiston industrialist, who gave the Libbey Forum to the College. His daughter, Mrs. Gertrude Libbey Anthony, was the wife of Professor Alfred Williams Anthony, who taught at Bates for several years. His son, Scott Libbey, is now a member of the Bates Board of Trustees.

Libbey Forum at Bates College

 Postcard Collection of PWM

     It might also be pointed out that William B. Skelton, '92, senior member and current chairman of the Board of Trustees, was the president of the Androscoggin and Kennebec Railway, successor to the Lewiston, Augusta, and Waterville Street Railway, during its last years of operation, and that he was president at one time and is now board chairman of Central Maine Power Company, which owned the Portland-Lewiston Interurban.

     Our own memories of the Lewiston trolleys are rather scant, for they were operating only during our freshman year. We do recall, however, riding the Figure Eight downtown, getting a transfer, and then taking a Weber Avenue car back to the College - all for a single fare. We also remember the night that a railroad torpedo we placed on the trolley tracks near Chase Hill - just before the last Sabattus car of the evening was due to pass. The loud explosion that resulted brought lights twinkling on in nearly every house in the neighborhood and we think a police cruiser came to investigate.

     That last car from Sabattus in the late evening always sounded a whistle as it came down Campus Avenue toward the College, and unless we were (studying) for an exam to be written the following day, the sound of the whistle was our signal to shut up the books and hit the sack. It was only a few hours until breakfast and that 7:40 class in French.

A conductor of the electric car poses with people on his route.

1941.

Image courtesy Androscoggin Historical Society

Conductor carrying "cash box" (fare

register) from the last car, 1941.

Courtesy Androscoggin Historical Society

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

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!

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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.

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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