A drawing by Francis Monahan of No. 210 of the Portland Railroad.
From the Maine Historical Society archives in Portland, ME.
Front cover of the June 1938, Volume l, Number 4, issue of the
Portland (Maine) Division of the Electric Railroaders Association
(ERA) newsletter, The Maine Electric Transiteer.
Last summer (2023) I conducted research on the Seashore Trolley Museum founders during 1939. I reached out to some Museum friends asking them to share any information they might have to help with my research. Several were able to share some great information. I was very grateful. Kevin Farrell shared two original copies of the Maine Electric Transiteer newsletter from 1938. I had never heard of the newsletter. I found them incredibly interesting, full of wonderful information, and very timely as the contents clearly were stepping stones for the path leading to what would become the activities that saved Car 31 and began what we know today as the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine.
Click Here: for the post on the March 1938 (The Very First Issue) Transiteer newsletter
Click Here: for the post on the April 1938 Transiteer newsletter
Click Here: for the post on the May 1938 Transiteer newsletter
Click Here: for the post on the July 1938 Transiteer newsletter
Click Here: for the post on the Feb/Mar 1939 Transiteer newsletter
I looked online and was able to acquire one original copy of the Maine Electric Transiteer newsletter from 1939. It too was full of stepping stones for the path leading to the founding of the Museum. And that was how the summer ended. Only three newsletters were located.
Last week, I began my summer 2024 research for additional materials on people and places during the late 1930s. This year, I subscribed to the Portland Press Herald so that I could access the online newspaper archives. Wow! What a great choice I made. I located more than 50 articles so, far (in just a few days ) that feature the Portland (Maine) Division of the ERA, their members, activities, fan trips, etc.
Seeing how several of the members lived close to the greater Portland area and in Charles D. Heseltine's case, for some time, he worked for the Maine Historical Society (MHS) in Portland. I reached out via email to the research department at MHS. Gave some background on what I was up to and asked for help on a couple of topics...Charles D. Heseltine and the Portland Division of the ERA and in particular, the Transiteer newsletter.
I received a prompt reply from Mia Sigler, Reference Librarian at the Brown Research Library. She provided a list of Charles's Collections and yes, there were five original issues of the Transiteer newsletter. Three that I did not have. Mia shared the process and costs related to the scanning of the items. We moved ahead and I received all three copies that afternoon!! (Thursday, June 19, 2024) Awesome!
Thank you, Mia 😊 I look forward to planning time to spend checking out the Charles D. Heseltine Collections :)
I will be reviewing the three posts done last year on the Transiteer newsletters. To see if I need to update.
This is one in a series of posts related to the Portland Division of the ERA. I look forward to sharing their activities over the short time they were an active group. I haven't located the date when the end of the group came about. Conversations have generated ideas that perhaps when the trolley operations in Portland came to an end in 1941. The onset of WWII may have had an impact on the ending of the group. I'll keep searching...
The Portland Division of the ERA was officially established on October 4, 1937.
Schedule of the fan trip that starts in Sanford at the York Utilities,
then to the old carbarn of Atlantic Shore Line in Kennebunkport,
then to the Biddeford & Saco to ride open car, No. 246. Ending
the excursion as guests at Mrs. Gertrude Libbey Anthony's home
in Bay View, Saco where they will spend time with the 1912,
fully complete, Portland-Lewiston Interurban, No. 10, Arbutus.
Page 2
Here, on the left, are the Portland Division ERA fans on open car No. 246,
during the excursion on June 5, 1938. You can see the Portland Division ERA
banner on display on the dasher of No. 246. No. 609, a single-truck Birney Car,
joined the fans while they were at the end of the B&SRR line in Old Orchard Beach.
Courtesy Seashore Trolley Museum Library:
O. R. Cummings Collection 2009-2_15_110
Click Here: for the post on the visit to see the Arbutus on June 5, 1938.
Gerald Cunningham accompanied the guest speaker, Breed
Walker. Gerald Cunningham, at the time, was an undergraduate
student at Northeastern University. One year later,
Gerry Cunningham would be one of the three ERA members
from the Boston Division of the ERA that would start on the
trek to save Car 31 of the Biddeford and Saco RR and in
doing so, become one of the eight founders of what we
know today as the Seashore Trolley Museum.
Page 3
Click Here: for the post "85 Years Ago Today - June 18, 1939 - Farewell B&SRR Fan trip
This page has some interesting Editorial notes.
Page 4
The first reunion of the former employees of the Portland-
Lewiston Interuban is mentioned. The reunion would be the first
of four, annual reunions, each held in Gray, Maine. Portland Div.
ERA member, Charles D. Heseltine would help attendees to
the annual reunions collect pieces of memorabilia from each of the
reunions (photos, newspaper articles, poems, cards, etc.). Charles
put all these items into a large scrapbook. That scrapbook, its
88 pages, double-sided contents were all conserved and
scanned in 2022. What an incredible Collection.
Page 5
The PLI Employees Reunion Scrapbook was made by
Charles Heseltine. He worked with the PLI Reunion
Committee and was thanked accordingly. Heseltine gave the
Scrapbook to his friend and electric railway history colleague,
O. R. Cummings. O. R. Cummings, is the well-known and
prolific publisher of dozens of books on the histories of
various electric railway companies. O. R. passed the
Scrapbook on to Seashore Trolley Museum's Library.
Click Here: for the post on one segment of the incredible PLI Employee Reunion Scrapbook
This page has a "Look Back" list for various electric railways
in Maine. The previous page, page 5, also looks ahead at
plans for the first, State-wide convention of electric rail
enthusiasts in Maine, scheduled for Labor Day weekend.
Page 6
Click Here: for the post that will link you to the history of every electric railway in Maine
Steps to build a model streetcar. Featuring construction of the
Portland-Railroad car, No. 210, featured on the cover of this issue.
Page 7
Here is Portland Railroad car No. 211 in the 1920s at a siding at the entrance
to the Portland Railroad St. John Street carhouse.
Portland Railroad (PRR) cars Nos. 210 and 211, were both built at the PRR
Shops on St. John Street in Portland, Maine in 1908. They are identical cars.
Courtesy Seashore Trolley Museum Library:
O. R. Cummings Collection 2009-2_38_089
Click Here: for the post on the Portland Railroad St. John Street Carhouse and Shops 1888-1941
Drawing on PRR 210
Pages 8 and 9
More details on constructing the model
Page 10
Story of PRR Motorman, Charlie Green, saving Portland's
waterfront from a devastating fire in the waterfront coal pockets!
Page 11
Portland Press Herald - Front Page - May 7, 1938
Poems and promotions.
Page 12
"A Ride to Winthrop" story of riding on the Maranacook prior
to 1928.
Page 13
The Maranacook on a postcard.
Page 13 of a slide show presentation I did live, online, in January 2024, for the
Kennebec Historical Society. You can watch the presentation about the history
of the electric railways that served the greater Augusta, Winthrop, and Waterville
areas by clicking on this link on the KHS Facebook homepage.
Slide 14 - the Maranacook, a combination car, on the left, with a similar
interior as combination car No. 70 from the Aroostook Valley Railroad seen
on the right. No. 70 is in the collection at the Seashore Trolley Museum.
Both photos are from the O. R. Cummings Collection
Courtesy Seashore Trolley Museum Library
Here is a photo I took of 1912, No. 70, from the Aroostook Valley
Railroad, during a special event at the Seashore Trolley Museum.
No. 70 is one of ten Maine railway vehicles that are listed on
the National Register of Historic Places.
Click Here: for the post on the ten Maine railway vehicles listed in the National Register of Historic Places
Slide 16 has a postcard that features Island Park, which is mentioned in the
Winthrop trip on page 13 or the Transiteer newsletter.
Click Here: for the post on the systems that served Winthrop from Augusta
One of the topics above is about the public hearing in Westbrook
about buses taking over and replacing the trolleys. Below is the
April 26, 1938, Portland Press Herald - letter to the Editor
by the Portland Div ERA
Page 14
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Portland Press Herald - April 26, 1938 - page 6
Advertisements and nationwide news
Page 15
Back Cover with advertisements
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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
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