Rosemary Junction in Eliot about 1903. The car on the left
has arrived from Badger's Island, while No. 20, at right, is
headed for York Beach over what was popularly called,
the "Airline," between Rosemary Junction and York Corner
Junction. Through cars were run hourly between Dover and
the resort in summer, shuttle trips being operated on a
two-hour headway between Rosemary and The Goldenrod
in other seasons.
Here is the newest release in the Maine Bicentennial series of electric railways in Maine. This blog post features the Portsmouth, Dover & 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 or from O. R. Cummings Collection.
To see the online version of the 1957 book, Atlantic Shore Line Railway: Its Predecessors and its Successors at Bangor Public Library here
- 3.15.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - York Utilities Company 1923-1949
- 3.14.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Atlantic Shore Railway 1911-1923
- 3.11.2020-Maine Bicentennial Series - Portsmouth, Dover & York St Rwy 1903-1906
- 3.9.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Auburn, Mechanic Falls & NorwayStRwy1902-3
- 3.7.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Portland & Brunswick Electric Railway 1902-1911
- 3.7.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Androscoggin & Kennebec Railway Co. 1919-1941
- 3.7.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Lewiston, Augusta & Waterville St Rwy 1907-1919
- 3.6.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Lewiston, Brunswick & Bath St Rwy 1898-1907
- 3.4.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Bangor Hydro-Electric Company 1925-1945
- 3.4.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Penobscot Central Railway 1898-1906
- 3.3.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Bangor. Hampden & Winterport Rwy 1896-1905
- 3.2.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Bangor, Orono & Old Town Railway 1895-1905
- 3.2.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Bangor Railway & Electric Company 1905-1925
- 3.1.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Bangor Street Railway 1889-1905
- 2.23.2020 -Maine Bicentennial Series - Portsmouth, Kittery & York St. Rwy 1897-1903
- 2.22.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Sanford & Cape Porpoise Railway 1899-1904
- 2.21.2020 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Mousam River Railroad 1892-1899
- 1.31.2019 - Maine Bicentennial Series - The Norway and Paris Street Railway 1894-1918
- 1.27.2019 - Maine Bicentennial Series - Aroostook Valley Railroad 1909-1946
- 10.17.2018 - Maine Bicentennial - Portland Railroad History 1860-1941
O. R. Cummings Collection
Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway
The short summary of the history of the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway (PD&Y) requires a look back at the circumstances that led up to the establishment of the PDY, which in short order came under the control of the Atlantic Shore Line Railway in 1906.
The terminus of the South Berwick village line was at a
Boston & Maine Northern Division grade crossing on Salmon
Street near the east end of the Salmon Falls River bridge.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The Kittery & Eliot Street Railway was chartered on March 20, 1897, and was authorized to build from Government Street, Kittery, through South Eliot to Sturgeon Creek in Eliot. the charter was revived on March 13, 1901, and later in the year, the connection to the Portsmouth, Kittery & York Street Railway at Government and New March Streets, is where the line would begin. Construction began early in July 1903. The line operated from Government Square to Greenacres, a distance of about 3.5 miles, as a branch of the PK&Y.
The original Shapleigh's bridge across the Eastern Division of
the Boston & Maine near Gould Corner in Eliot before 1907.
O. R. Cummings Collection
During the summer of 1901, Maine Governor, John F. Hill, announced his intentions of building a cross-country trolley line from Dover, NH, through South Berwick, and his hometown of Eliot, to York Village and York Beach. At the time, Governor Hill, who had been active in the state's traction industry for several years, was a director of the Augusta, Hallowell & Gardiner Railroad (a predecessor of the Lewiston, Augusta & Waterville Street Railway) and the Norway & Paris and the Rockland, Thomaston & Camden Street Railways in association with George E. Macomber, one of the promoters of these three railways.
After the original York Beach carhouse was destroyed by fire
in 1904, a replacement was erected by the PD&Y in 1905 on
the same site on the west side of Long Beach Avenue
between Nubble Road and Church Street. Two tracks
inside the building, which also housed a 220-cell storage
battery required to ensure adequate voltage at the resort.
This building was sold after the line went out of business
in 1923. Eventually, this building became the York Beach
Casino, a popular dance hall, was destroyed by fire
on May 6, 1976. O. R. Cummings Collection
In pursuance of his purpose, he organized two provisional corporations, the Berwick, Eliot & York Street Railway in Maine and the Dover & Eliot Street Railway in New Hampshire; purchased the controlling stock and assumed the debt of the Eliot Bridge Company, owning a toll bridge over the Salmon Falls River between Dover and South Berwick, and subsequently acquired substantial interests in the Portsmouth, Kittery & York and the Kittery & Eliot Street Railways.
Passing the Philip Furbish home in Eliot is a 13-bench open
car headed for Dover. The tracks in Dover ended in Franklin
Square on Central Avenue where they almost-but-not-quite
connected physically with those of Dover, Somersworth
& Rochester Street Railway. A Philip Furbish image in
O. R. Cummings Collection
The Berwick, Eliot & York Street Railway was approved by the Maine Railroad commissioners on February 7, 1902, and the Dover & Eliot Street Railway was approved in NH on February 26, 1902. Late in 1902, Governor Hill, by then a director of both the Portsmouth, Kittery & York, and the Kittery & Eliot Street Railways, moved to consolidate the properties into a single operating company. On February 11, 1903, permission was authorized for the Berwick, Eliot & York to change its name to the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway; to lease or purchase the Portsmouth, Kittery & York, the Kittery & Eliot, the Berwick & South Berwick, and the Dover & Eliot Street Railway, and the Eliot Bridge Company, and to construct a branch from some point on its mainline to connect with the Kittery & Eliot's existing trackage at Greenacre. The name change occurred on May 20, 1903.
PWM Collection
PWM Collection
The Berwick and South Berwick Street Railway was chartered in 1901, but no steps were taken to begin construction, so the charter was allowed to lapse in 1903. The PD&Y leased the Berwick & Eliot line adsorbed the PK&Y and the Kittery & Eliot and took over on November 1, 1903.
Map of the Portsmouth, Dover & York Street Railway with
fare zones as of 1911. In 1911, the PD&Y was the
Western Division of the Atlantic Shore Railway.
O. R. Cummings' 1964 book, "Trolleys to York Beach."
In all, more than 20 miles of new railway were built during 1903, including the Dover & Eliot from Dover to the Eliot Bridge; from Eliot Bridge (at the state line) to South Berwick, from South Berwick Junction to York Corner, and from Rosemary Junction to Greenacres. As of November 1, 1903, when the Portsmouth, Kittery & York was consolidated with the PD&Y, the line operated on about 40 miles of mainline trackage, 21 miles of which were over the property's private right-of-way.
The Gould Corner waiting station in Eliot in about 1903.
Located on what is now Route 103, about one-mile northeast of
Rosemary Junction. O. R. Cummings Collection
The South Berwick carhouse is shown here shortly after its
completion in 1903. The elevated tank contained water for
an automatic sprinkler system in the barn. There were seven
tracks and a two-story ell at the right which contained offices,
a crew's lobby, a power substation, and a second-floor
dormitory. A fire on November 16, 1918, destroyed a
good portion of the building. No trace of the building
remains today. O. R. Cummings Collection
Just a short distance from the South Berwick carhouse was
South Berwick Junction, where the tracks to South Berwick
village branched from the mainline between Dover and
Rosemary Junction. Nearby was Quamphegan Park, a
privately owned resort bordering Quamphegan Brook
and the Salmon Falls River. Boating, fishing, bathing, and
a dancing pavilion were among its simple attractions.
O. R. Cummings Collection
No special ceremonies appear to have marked the opening of the new routes constructed by Portsmouth, Dover & York. The certificate of safety was granted on June 29, and regular service between Dover and York Beach commenced on July 1. Because of a delay in the completion of the viaduct over the Boston & Maine near the Eliot depot, the extension from Rosemary Junction to Greenacre did not open until July 14. Operations for new construction were finalized on August 13, 1903, with the "Airline" route from Rosemary Junction in Eliot to York Corner mainly over the private right-of-way, opened on November 1, 1903, as a direct route from Dover to York Beach.
Open car No. 19 at the Greenacre on July 24, 1902,
opening day of the Kittery & Eliot Railway.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The basic fare on the PD&Y system was five cents, and each route was divided into two or more five-cent zones.
Portsmouth-York Beach: Portsmouth and Emery's (Ferry Lane), Kittery; Emery's and Sea Point; Sea Point and Seabury, York; Seabury and Club Stables, York Harbor; Club Stables and St. Aspinquid Park, York Beach.
Portsmouth - Dover: Portsmouth and Cross Street, South Eliot; Cross Street and Rosemary Junction; Rosemary Junction and South Berwick Junction; South Berwick Junction and Dover.
Dover-York Beach: Dover and South Berwick Junction, South Berwick Junction, and Rosemary Junction; Rosemary Junction and Langley's Road, East Eliot; Langley's Road and Rice's Bridge; Rice's Bridge and Club Stables, York Harbor; Club Stables and York Beach.
Dover-South Berwick: Dover and South Berwick Junction; South Berwick Junction and South Berwick.
Dover-Eliot-Kittery Map from
2015 NEERHS book,
"The Illustrated Atlas of Maine's Street
& Electric Railways 1863-1946"
Kittery-York Beach Map from
2015 NEERHS book,
"The Illustrated Atlas of Maine's Street
& Electric Railways 1863-1946"
In addition to the passenger receipts and revenue from mail and express, the PD&Y had another source of income - the tolls from the railway-owned Eliot Bridge.
A few typical tolls were as follows:
Foot Passenger.............................................. .02
One Person with Horse................................. .08
Carriage Drawn by One Horse...................... .15
Carriage Drawn by Two Horses.................... .25
Coach, Hack, or Sleigh Drawn by Four Horse .40
Led Horses or Cattle, Each............................ .05
Sheep or Swine, Each.................................... .01
Bicycle........................................................... .03
In later years, the rate for bicycles was increased to five cents. The rate for automobiles with two seats was fifteen cents, with a two-cent charge added for each additional seat, occupied or unoccupied. The rate for motor trucks (limited in weight) was 25 cents.
Built by the Laconia Car Company Works for the PD&Y in
1904, U. S. Mail car No. 108 also carried Express. No. 108
is among the collection of Maine railway vehicles at
Seashore Trolley Museum is listed in the
O. R. Cummings Collection
Railway Mail Service clerk Charles Preston sorts letters in
the postal compartment of No. 108 somewhere between
Badger's Island and York Beach.
O. R. Cummings Collection
The PD&Y utilized about 41 total miles of trackage. During its full fiscal year of operation ending June 30, 1905; the line carried 2,812,046 passengers and generated $99,482 in passenger revenues.
Late in 1905, stock control of the Portsmouth, Dover & York was acquired by the syndicate that controlled the Atlantic Shore Line Railway (ASL), and on February 1, 1906, the PD&Y was formally consolidated with the Atlantic Shore Line and the PD&Y became the ASL's Western Division.
We are still in need of funds for creating the interpretation programs that will tell this fascinating 100+-year-old story of the Narcissus. For information on donation options, scroll down this post and find the one that best fits your position. Fund 816 to help with the restoration and Fund 817 (PLI Education-Interpretation programs ) should be noted when making a donation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Click Here for the post that has the short virtual 3-D video of the digital model of the Narcissus, with components added to the file from earlier this year (the gold leaf file had not been added yet).
Restoration work continues on the Narcissus. The Narcissus is more than 110 years old now and has so many incredible stories to share. The restoration of this majestic icon of Maine's electric railway history is but one of those incredible stories.
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.
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
Seashore Trolley Museum Promo Video
The paperback edition of Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride can be purchased online through the Seashore Trolley Museum's store website. Books purchased through the Museum's website directly benefit the Museum and the Narcissus project.
Click Here to go to the Museum Store web page to order online
Click Here to go to the Amazon page to order the ebook or audiobook online
Paperback books are available at these local bookstores in Maine:
Center for Maine Crafts, West Gardiner Service Plaza
The Book Review, Falmouth
The Bookworm, Gorham
Letterpress Books, Portland
Maine Historical Society Store, Portland
Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad, Portland
Morph Gallery & Emporium, Kennebunk
New Gloucester Historical Society, New Gloucester
Nonesuch Books and More, South Portland
Seashore Trolley Museum, Kennebunkport
Sherman's Maine Coast Book Shops, All Locations
Thompson's Orchard, New Gloucester
Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride
by Jean M. Flahive
Illustrations by Amy J. Gagnon
Listen to a 2-minute, 30-second, Retail Audio Sample of the Audiobook
Millie Thayer is a headstrong farmer's daughter who chases her dreams in a way you would expect a little girl nicknamed "Spitfire" would run full tilt and with her eyes on the stars. Dreaming of leaving the farm life, working in the city, and fighting for women's right to vote, Millie imagines flying away on a magic carpet. One day, that flying carpet shows up in the form of an electric trolley that cuts across her farm. A fortune-teller predicts that Millie's path will cross that of someone famous. Suddenly, she finds herself caught up in events that shake the nation, Maine, and her family. Despairing that her dreams may be shattered, Millie learns, in an unexpected way, that dreams can be shared.
A resource for teachers
Companion curriculum State-standard-based units,
vocabulary, and reading activities for use in grades 3-8
are available online as downloadable resources through
Seashore Trolley Museum's website
www.trolleymuseum.org/elegantride/
Maine Historical Society has created eight companion lesson units in Social Studies and ELA that were inspired by Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride - These State-standard-based lesson plans for use in grades 6, 7, and 8 are easily adapted for use in grades 3-5. Vocabulary and Reading activities for grades 3-8 along with the eight lesson plan units are available free and may be downloaded through Seashore Trolley Museum's website www.trolleymuseum.org/elegantride/
Go to the Teacher Resource Page in the pull-down for more details.
A 60-second intro to Teddy Roosevelt, Millie, and the Elegant Ride by author, Jean Flahive
Click Here to watch the video on YouTube
Award-winning author, Jean M. Flahive
Please Consider a Donation to the Narcissus Project to help us tell the incredible story of the Narcissus through the interpretation portion of the Narcissus Project.
Here is an example of how donations to the Narcissus Project now will help with the interpretation portion of the project. The interpretation programming will include exhibits, displays, and education programming. In 2019, through generous donations to the Narcissus Project, we were able to conserve, replicate, and have high resolutions digital image files made of the original, 1910, 28.5-foot long, surveyor map of the elevation and grade of the 30-mile private right-of-way of the Portland, Gray, and Lewiston Railroad (Portland-Lewiston Interurban) Click Here
Thank You!
the crowd gathered in Gray, Maine on August 18, 1914.
Image courtesy of Gray Historical Society
The Narcissus as the Sabattus Lake Diner in Sabattus, Maine,
circa 1940. Photo by John Coughlin in the Kevin Farrell
Collection at Seashore Trolley Museum
L. Henri Vallee (right) and family members in the
Narcissus, when it was Vallee's summer camp in
Sabattus, Maine circa 1958. Photo courtesy Daniel Vallee
Inside the Donald G. Curry Town House Restoration Shop, the Narcissus is in the midst of major work as we strive to complete its restoration. We are now planning the interpretation portion of the Narcissus Project. Donations to the Narcissus Project may be used in the future to help tell the incredible 100-plus-year-old story of the Narcissus. Your donation to the Narcissus is helping to make the dream of the project's success, a reality.
See below for Donation options -
It starts with YOU
Your Donation Matters
Make a Donation TODAY
Please Help the Narcissus.
Donation Options to Help the Narcissus Project:
The New England Electric Railway Historical Society
is the 501c3 organization that owns and operates the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, ME, and the National Streetcar
Museum in Lowell (MA).
The New England Electric Railway Historical Society registered with the IRS (EIN# 01-0244457) and was incorporated in Maine in 1941.
Check or Money Order ***** should be made payable to:
New England Electric Railway Historical Society
In the memo: for a donation to the Interpretation programming
please write: PLI Education Fund 817
For a donation to help with the restoration write: Narcissus Fund 816
Mail to: Seashore Trolley Museum
P. O. Box A
Kennebunkport, ME 04046
Credit Card ***** donations can be one-time donations or you
may choose to have a specific amount charged to your card
automatically every month. Please contact the Museum bookkeeper, via email at finance@trolleymuseum.org or by phone, at 207-967-2800 ext. 3.
Online Donations - may be made by using a Credit Card:
Click Here to make an online donation through the Museum's website - When at the Donation page: Fill in donor info, etc., when at "To which fund are you donating? Scroll down to "Other" and type in 816 Narcissus, then continue filling in the required information.
Click Here for PayPal - to make an online donation: you can use email: finance@trolleymuseum.org and in the message box write:
For "Narcissus Fund 816" - if supporting the restoration
For "PLI Education Fund 817" - if supporting Interpretation programs
Donation of Securities ***** We also accept donations of
securities. You can contact the Museum bookkeeper, via email at finance@trolleymuseum.org or by phone, at 207-967-2800 ext. 3,
for brokerage account information for accepting donated securities.
BONUS ***** If you work for a company/corporation that will
"match" an employee's donation to an approved 501c3 non-profit
educational organization, please be sure to complete the necessary paperwork with your employer so that your donation is matched :)
Questions? ***** Please contact Narcissus project sponsor:
Phil Morse, narcissus@gmail.org or call 207-985-9723 - cell.
Thank You :)
Thank You for our Current Funding Partners
* 20th Century Electric Railway Foundation - 2020/2018 - Major Gift, 2017/2014 Matching Grants
* Renaissance Charitable Foundation (LPCT) by Fiduciary Trust Charitable Giving Fund
* Renaissance Charitable Foundation (LPCT) by Fiduciary Trust Charitable Giving Fund
* Mass Bay RRE - 2018 Railroad Preservation Grant
* Thornton Academy (Saco, ME) - Staff & Alumni - Matching Grant Challenge 2014
* New England Electric Railway Historical Society (Kennebunkport, ME) - Member Donations
* Amherst Railway Society - 2015 Heritage Grant
* National Railway Historical Society - 2016 & 2015 Heritage Preservation Grants
* Enterprise Holding Foundation - 2015 Community Grant
* Theodore Roosevelt Association - Member Donations
* John Libby Family Association and Member Donations
* The Conley Family - In Memory of Scott Libbey 2018/2017/2016/2015
* The W. S. Libbey Family - Awalt, Conley, Graf, Holman, Libbey, McAvoy, McLaughlin, Meldrum, O'Halloran, Salto, - 2018/2017
* The Hughes Family 2017/2016/2010
* New Gloucester Historical Society and Member Donations
* Gray Historical Society and Member Donations
* Gray Public Library Association - Pat Barter Speaker Series
* Scarborough Historical Society - PRR/PLI
* LogMein - Matching Employee Donation
* IBM - Matching Employee/Retiree Donations
* Fidelity Charitable Grant - Matching Employee Donations
* Richard E. Erwin Grant - 2017/2016
The Narcissus, with interior back-lit, stained glass windows is majestic.
Make a donation today to help restore the interior of this Maine gem.
Help Theodore Roosevelt's Maine Ride get back on track! Once restored,
you will be able to ride in luxury on this National Register Treasure at
Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine.
PWM photo
Please Consider Making a Donation to the project of the National Register of Historic Places member, Narcissus. We are currently raising funds to advance the restoration and to tell the incredible story of this Maine gem.
Various News stories during the summer of 2015 about the
Narcissus and its connection to Theodore Roosevelt. TR
was a passenger on the Narcissus on August 18, 1914.
Photo by Patricia Pierce Erikson
The Narcissus - July 31, 2015. Make a donation today.
Help Theodore Roosevelt's Maine Ride get back on track!
Once restored, you will be able to ride in luxury on this
National Historic Treasure at
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