A BRAZILIAN PERSPECTIVE - RIO's OPEN CARS

More Rio Open Cars on the next page - but begin below if this subject is new to you!

 Mr. Helio Ribeiro, a Brazilian viewer of the CTM website and trolley aficionado, wrote to us recently in pursuit of permission to use several of our Rio de Janeiro Car #1850 photos on his trolley-documentary themed website. With some additional correspondence he was kind enough to provide us with some older photos of the streetcar (twin sister #1887) in her native country and doing what she did best – hauling passengers. But first I want to quote Mr. Ribeiro, as therein lay the Museums pleasurably received reinforcement of its raison-d’etre. He said; “On behalf of all Brazilian streetcar enthusiasts, I must thank the Connecticut Trolley Museum for keeping car #1850 in such good condition. It looks almost the same as when it was running in Rio de Janeiro. Its painting, benches and other characteristics are very well preserved. Only minor changes were made, like the trolley above the car (it used bow before). I rode #1850 many times and I knew it very well. I've seen several Rio de Janeiro streetcars in American Museums and #1850 is by far the best preserved. Congratulations”.

 [Click on any photo below for the enlargement]

Car 1887 running in Rio de Janeiro. - 1850 and 1887 were twins

Car 1794 running in Rio de Janeiro - Photo taken in 1957.

(#1794 - 1850 & 1887 were purchased by the CTM in 1965)

We had sent Helio a copy of the information that we had on the history of #1850 and #1887 and he in turn replied with this corrected data;

“From 1907 until 1963 the main streetcar service in Rio de Janeiro was run by "The Rio de Janeiro Tramway, Light & Power Co. Ltd.", a Canadian company known in Brazil by the nickname Light. Companhia de Transportes Coletivos (CTC), a state company, bought streetcar service from Light in 1964. So, car 1850 was built in 1912 by Light, not by CTC."

"Motorcars like #1850 were 13 bench 4 axles 65 passenger cars. They could pull one or two trailers, but these were smaller than the motorcar. They were 8 bench 2 axles 40 passenger cars."

A small trailer pulled by a motorcar like 1850 (only the rear of the motorcar is visible).

In this photo you can see that the trailers were smaller than the motorcars, not the same size.

"I've never heard about trailers to transport animals. Maybe there's a misunderstanding about a special kind of motorcar, known as "taioba" (name of a Brazilian vegetable), that were 2nd class 2 axles small motorcars. They had 2 longitudinal benches instead of 8 transversal benches, in order to have more space available in the middle of the car. Taiobas had cheaper fares and could transport passengers, luggage, vegetables, small animals like hens, cats, dogs and even small cargo (chairs, tables, mattresses) as long as they could be carried thru its not so big entrance door."

TAIOBA: above mentioned 2nd class motorcar

As you can see it is carrying mainly passengers and is pulling a small trailer.

Mr. Ribeiro adds this; “All Brazilian streetcars bought by American museums except #322 and #441 used to run in the borough in which I lived for 22 years. They ran on line 67 - Alto da Boa Vista (something like Nicely Landscaped Heights in English) and I used to go to the college in those streetcars. That is why I know all of them.”

A small trailer as it is today in the courtyard of a school at Rio de Janeiro

Its painting is not the original one.

Mr. Ribeiro also makes this observation; “Looking at the photos in CTM's site I found those of #355. What a beautiful car!! What a restoration! It made me recall some old-style streetcars that ran in Rio de Janeiro in the 1920 decade. Find attached a photo taken in 1924 of a car that resembles #355. I don't know if they are the same model. There's a watermark in the photo that makes it not very clear."

We appreciate the photos and information updates supplied by Helio but I think that the following comment should stir the heart of all the folks that give of their time and energy to maintain the Museum but especially to those who do the restoration work within those drafty Museum trolley barns. Helio Riberio poignantly says; “Sorry, but what you do at CTM is not restoration. You build masterpieces, you make the past become present. If institutions like CTM didn't exist the transportation's History would be poorer. God bless all of you.”

We are looking for information on Brazilian Cars #441, 1719 and 1889. If any of our readers have an insight as to their location and/or status please let us know and we will share that with our Brazilian Trolley compadre.

Send any info (no matter how trivial you may think) to:

editor@ct-trolley.org

We have had quick responses to the above request for information. Thanks go out to Mr. Wells of the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum and Mr. Salomon of the Rockhill Trolley Museum. President Joel Salomon was gracious in sending along some additional photographs of our RIO favorites. On to the answers:

Car 441 & 1719; They are in Middletown, PA at the Middletown and Hummelstown RR. and belong to a Mr. Wendell Dillenger. Joel saw and photographed 441 this past Winter saying that; "It is indoors for the first time in many years. For the years that it sat outdoors, it really is not in bad condition. This is the car that was RELIC for may years. It moved to PA in 1984." Bruce adds: "The cars (441 & 1719) were pictured in an issue of Traction and Models during the 60s and were operating cars at the Fox River Museum (RELIC) in South Elgin Illinois."

 [Click on any photo for the enlargement]

 Photos courtesy of Joel Salomon

Try this website for followup:- www.mhrailroad.com

Car 1889; Consensus has it that it belonged to Edward Blossom at Topton PA until 2000 when his cars and the equipment of the East Penn Traction Association were merged with the BVTA group at the Electric City Museum in Scranton PA and was then stored outdoors in Dushore for years before being moved to Scranton. Bruce added that it has been determined that car1889 is actually now designated as car 604.

Try this website for follow-up: www.ectma.org

Joel gives us the following additional information and photographs;

The two cars that were at Magee in Bloomsburg, PA were numbered 1758, which is now at Arden and the other open car at Magee was 1779. This is the car that was restored first and had the closed dashed. The car at Arden has the open dashes. Car 1779 is now at the Thresher operation in IA along with 1718, the arch roof open

We have the remains of ST car 322 at our museum in Rockhill. This car was under restoration until 1988 when the building it was being stored in off-site had a

devastating fire. The car was basically destroyed but we did salvage the metal pieces.

Photographs of their Rio de Janeiro car

 Rockhill Car 355 will be dedicated this June 9th and Joel has sent these

terrific photographs along.. (Rockhill is proud of her - ya think ;-)

Find out more:  

ADDENDUM:

"AWAITING RESTORATION" STATUS - CAR#1887

For those of you that may be interested - we know that Mr. Ribeiro is - our resident photog, Tim Lesniak, has put himself at some risk to get into the Gale Car Barn to take several photographs of 1887 as she presently exists, awaiting restoration. It will give you some idea of what even weather protected "down-time" will do to these beloved beasties.

All photos will enlarge when selected

 We can hear, even this far away, Helios sigh of relief knowing that she hasn't been scrapped ;-)

RIO PHOTOS RECEIVED JUNE 17TH - '07

Midwest Electric Railway Association - RIO Cars #1718 & #1779

(click on the photos for their enlargement)

You can find the MERA web-link on our "Links and Sponsors" page

 Magee Transportation Museum - RIO Cars #2 & #3

(click on the photos for their enlargement)

RIO Car #3 was restored with a custom built open dash. This car is now at the PA Trolley Museum after spending numerous years in Florida at various locations.

Magee Transportation Museum - Bloomsburg, PA. is now defunct