Later converted to a line car (work car), Portsmouth,
Kittery and York Street Railway (PK&Y) No. 4 is shown
here on Government Street at Kittery Foreside in 1897.
O. R. Cummings Collection
Here is the newest release in the Maine Bicentennial series of electric railways in Maine. This blog post features the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway summary/images from the book, "Atlantic Shore Line Railway" by O. R. Cummings, presented as Transportation Volume 4 by the Connecticut Electric Railway and the National Railway Historical Society-Connecticut Chapter - June 1950 Re-issued January 1957. And text/images are also taken from an O. R. Cummings book, "Trolleys To York Beach: The Portsmouth Dover & York Street Railway", Bulletin No. 1, New England Electric Historical Society, December 30, 1964. Some text/images may be from the NEERHS 2015 publication, "The Illustrated Atlas of Maine's Street & Electric Railways 1863-1946. Additional images will be credited.
To see the online version of the 1957 book, Atlantic Shore Line Railway at Bangor Public Library here
Click Here for the post: Ninety Communities in Maine with Electric Railway Service!
Click Here for the post: 57 Million Passengers Carried on Electric Railways in Maine in 1915!
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - History of the Portland Railroad 1860-1941
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - History of the Calais Street Railway 1894-1929
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - History of Aroostook Valley Railroad 1909-1946
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Fryeburg Horse Railroad 1887-1913
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - The Norway and Paris Street Railway 1894-1918
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Skowhegan & Norridgewock Railway 1894-1903
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Benton and Fairfield Railway 1898-1928
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - The Somerset Traction Company 1895-1928
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - The Fairfield and Shawmut Railway 1903-1927
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Waterville, Fairfield, & Oakland Rwy 1887-1937
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Trolleys to Augusta, Maine 1889-1932
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Rockland, South Thomaston, & St. George Rwy
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Biddeford and Saco Railroad Co. 1888-1939
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Mousam River Railroad - 1892-1899
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Sanford & Cape Porpoise Railway 1899-1904
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Bangor Street Railway 1889-1905
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Bangor Railway & Electric Company 1905-1925
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Bangor, Orono & Old Town Railway 1895-1905
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Bangor, Hampden & Winterport Rwy 1896-1905
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Penobscot Central Railway 1898-1906
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Bangor Hydro-Electric Company 1925-1945
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Lewiston, Brunswick & Bath St Rwy 1898-1907
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Lewiston, Augusta & Waterville St Rwy 1907-19
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Androscoggin & Kennebec Railway 1919-1941
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Portland & Brunswick Street Railway 1902-1911
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Auburn & Turner Railroad 1905-1928
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Auburn, Mechanic Falls & NorwayStRwy1902-7
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Portsmouth, Dover & York St Rwy 1903-1906
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Atlantic Shore Line Railway 1900-1910
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Atlantic Shore Railway 1911-1923
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - York Utilities Company 1923-1949
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Portland-Lewiston Interurban - It Begins 1914
Click Here for the post: Maine Bicentennial series - Portland-Lewiston Interurban - The End 1933
Trestle of the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway
over the York Harbor & Beach Railroad at Seabury in York, ME.
The railway vehicle on the trestle is the single-truck flat car,
"B", which was built in 1898. O. R. Cummings Collection
Portsmouth, Kittery, and York Street Railway
At the southeasterly corner of York County, the Kittery & York Electric Railroad was incorporated on March 27, 1893, to build from Kittery through Kittery Point to York Villiage, York Harbor, and York Beach, and to operate a ferry across the Piscataqua River between Kittery and Portsmouth, New Hampshire. On March 19, 1895, the charter was extended two years, and late in 1896, Amos F. Gerald of Fairfield, ME, one of Maine's best-known street railway promotors acquired control, and on February 2, 1897, another two-year extension was granted with the name of the company changed to the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway.
Construction began in the spring of 1897, the route extending from Badger's Island, Kittery, where a ferry landing and waiting station were built, over locations named in the Kittery & York Electric Railroad's charter, a distance of 15.1 miles. Commenting on the PK&Y construction in 1897, the State Railroad Commissioners' report said of it, in part: "This is the longest electric railroad construction in Maine during the year."
Map by Charles D. Heseltine in the 2015 publication, "The
Illustrated Atlas of Maine's Street & Electric Railways 1863-1946.
The first ferry was purchased second-hand in 1897. The used ferry was renamed the "New March". It turned out to be unsatisfactory, and a small steamer, the "Mystic", was leased and later purchased.
War hysteria gripped the nation after the sinking of the battleship "Maine" in Havana Harbor in Cuba on February 15, 1898, and on March 15, the PK&Y found it necessary to deny rumors that the "New March" would be converted into an armored cruiser for the defense of Portsmouth Harbor.
The "New March" was destroyed by fire in 1899 and was replaced by the "Kittery" in 1900.
Crossing the Piscataqua River between Portsmouth, NH, and
Badger's Island, Kittery, ME, is the double-ended ferry,
"Kittery," was built at Kennebunkport, ME in 1900.
In the 2015 book by NEERHS, "The Illustrated Atlas of
Maine's Street & Electric Railways 1863-1946
Water-side view of the terminal at Badger's Island, Kittery, ME
shortly after the arrival of the new ferry, "Kittery" in 1900.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The station building and covered walkway, as well as wagon
lane, appear in this view of Badger's Island landing in Kittery.
O. R. Cummings Collection
After crossing the Piscataqua River, passengers disembarked
from the ferry and boarded a trolley car at this waiting station
on Badger's Island. This depot had a waiting room and a
refreshment stand. Postcard from O. R. Cummings
Collection in the 2015 book by NEERHS "The Illustrated
Atlas of Maine's Street & Electric Railways 1863-1946
Ceres Street ferry landing in Portsmouth, NH, seen here as
the Atlantic Shore Line Railway (ASLRy) Ferry Landing,
originally was built by the Portsmouth, Kittery & York
Electric Railway (PK&Y) in 1897. The PK&Y would be
absorbed by the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway
(PD&Y) in 1903 and in 1906 the PD&Y merged with and
lost its identity to the ASLRy. O. R. Cummings Collection
The road, as a whole, was a very crooked one, both horizontally and vertically, and because of its following the shore, some 13 pile trestles totaling nearly 1.3 miles in length, were required to cross the numerous creeks, coves, and harbors along the route. Ten waiting stations of wood frame construction were erected at different points along the line in 1897. All being of tasteful design, they resembled the summer houses or gazebos popular at the turn of the century and most were open to the breezes during the summer months, being enclosed with shutters or windows during the other seasons.
A wooden frame carhouse and a brick power station were built at Kittery Point, with another carbarn at York Beach. Rolling stock of four single-truck closed cars, two 10-bench, 4-wheel opens, and seven, 14-bench, double-truck opens was purchased from the Briggs Carriage Company in Newburyport, MA.
The rambling Kittery Point carhouse was built by the PK&Y
in 1897. Located near Hutchins' Corner (at the intersection
of Pepperell and Chauncey Creek Roads), was 45 feet by
175 feet, and erected on piles over a tidewater swamp. It had a
capacity of 12 cars and included some repair facilities.
The power station is at the rear. O. R. Cummings Coll.
A drawing showing the layout of the PK&Y carhouse.
O. R. Cummings Collection
Operations began on August 12, 1897, when the first car traversed the entire line. However, until the 27th of that month, only limited service was given, with two cars running over the 4 miles of line between Badger's Island and the Kittery Point carhouse. Regular service to York Village commenced on October 6th and to York Harbor and York Beach on June 30th of 1898.
PK&Y No. 4 near the intersection of Chauncey Creek and
Tenney Hill Roads, Kittery Point in 1897.
O. R. Cummings Collection
One of the original Briggs Carriage Company (Amesbury,
MA), 14-bench open cars of the Portsmouth, Kittery & York
Street Railway in Kittery, Maine. Here you see the typical
side-of-road construction and winding track. When these
cars were first in use, they bore no numbers. Image
from Howard T. Moulton within the O. R. Cummings Coll.
Turning from New March Street into Government Street,
Kittery, one of seven 14-bench open cars purchased in 1897
by the PK&Y from the Briggs Carriage Company,
Newburyport, MA. O. R. Cummings Collection
Turning from New March Street into Government Street,
Kittery, one of seven 14-bench open cars purchased in 1897
by the PK&Y from the Briggs Carriage Company,
Newburyport, MA. O. R. Cummings Collection
Trolley car crossing Locke's Cove trestle, near what later
became the main entrance to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard,
Kittery, Maine. O. R. Cummings Collection
Crossing Calls' trestle between Kittery Point and Cutt's
Island en route to York Beach. O. R. Cummings Collection
The longest trestle between Kittery and York was across
Brave Boat Harbor. The view is taken from Kittery's end of the span.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The very first pile drawbridge in America, Sewall's Bridge,
across York River in York, was built in 1761, had to be
strengthened to permit the use of electric cars.
O. R. Cummings Collection
Negotiating the sharp curve at The Willows, York Beach.
O. R. Cummings Collection
An enthusiastic crowd greets the first trolley to York Beach
on the afternoon of August 27, 1897
O. R. Cummings Collection
Late in 1899, the railway purchased St. Aspinquid Park, a pleasure resort on the north end of York Beach, near the mouth of the Cape Neddick River. The park contained a casino, restaurant, and menagerie and was attractively landscaped with walks, carriage drives, and rustic arbors. On June 27, 1900, the PK&Y opened a short extension from its original terminus at York Beach northerly to St. Aspinquid Park, a distance of .43 mile, and installed a 220-cell storage battery at York Beach carbarn.
Kittery Point Bridge across Spruce Creek, York Harbor &
Beach Railroad trestle and coal wharf where the PK&Y
received fuel for its power plant appear in this 1898 view.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway was one of the first street railways in New England to operate a railway post office car, being given a 4-year contract in 1897 to carry the mail between Portsmouth and York Harbor.
Original mail car "A" of the PK&Y at York Beach circa 1899.
O. R. Cummings Collection
During the summer of 1901, Maine Governor, John F. Hill attempted to secure the necessary charters to construct an electric railway from York Center through his native town of Eliot to the New Hampshire state line at the Eliot bridge across the Salmon Falls River, and over the bridge to Franklin Square in Dover. In pursuance of that purpose, in 1902, he organized the Berwick, Eliot & York Street Railway in Maine and the Dover & Eliot Street Railway in New Hampshire.
Governor Hill acquired a large interest in the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway. In 1903, the Berwick, Eliot & York Street Railway was given additional powers by the state legislature, including permission to purchase or lease the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway, and other local railways. Subsequently, the Berwick, Eliot & York Street Railway changed its name to the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway (PD&Y), and on November 1, 1903, the PD&Y took over the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway. Though "officially" still an operating railway entity within the corporate structure of the PD&Y until 1917, the merger truly ended the PK&Y.
The total cost of the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway as of June 30, 1903, was $511,837, covered in part by $221,700 in common capital stock (2,217 shares at $100 par) and $200,000 in 6 percent 20-year gold bonds, issued as of March 1, 1897, and maturing on March 1, 1917. There were 108 stockholders, 28 of whom were Maine residents, with a total of 706 shares.
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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.
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
