Railway System in Dayton

The streetcar rail system was established in Dayton during the mid-nineteenth century. The rail system was not intended to make a profit but to connect the city and surrounding rural areas. This would allow for farm product to be shipped by rail into the city for sale and to open farmlands to real estate development. It was not until the late nineteenth century that electric railway cars were operating in the city. Prior to this time, all streetcars were pulled by horses and mules.

Dayton was one of the earliest cities to use electric power for transportation. The electric railways allowed Dayton to expand in several ways. Rural communities were able to distribute goods quicker than ever before. Telegrams and telegraphs were moved faster from city to city. The rail car even supported the famous Wright Brothers in allowing them to make a quicker journey to Huffman Prairie where they tested early models of their airplane. The Huffman Prairie flying field was located just off Simms Station on the Dayton, Springfield, and Urbana Electric Railway.  At the end of 1909, there were one hundred miles of railway tracks in Dayton.

The flood in March of 1913 damaged every streetcar in the city. It took nearly a month for all cars to be in operation. Several years after the flood, the rail had competition in both the jitney and coach businesses. The use of automobiles in business, as well as personal use, start to overshadow the railway system in Dayton. The city continued to run four to eleven rail lines for the next 25 years. During this time, the rails were being operated by several different companies. In 1930, a study was conducted and concluded that the railway companies could not keep up with the growing city. The railway was turned into the City Rail Line in 1953. Though it looks different today, the line was made public and created the Regional Transit Authority or the RTA. 

Sources:

1.   L.H. Everts & Co., Illustrated Historical Atlas of Clark County, Ohio. Knightstown, Ind.: The Bookmark, 1974.
2.  Keenan, Jack. The Uncertain Trolley: A History of The Dayton, Springfield, Urbana Electric Railway. Fletcher, Ohio: Cam-Tech Publishing, 1992.
3.  Carillon Park. The Electric Railway. Dayton, Ohio.
4.  MS-209, Dayton Electric Railway Historical Collection, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio.
5. MS-202, Dayton Manufacturing Company Collection, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio.