Baltimore Streetcars: The Postwar Years | 
 enlarge | Author: Herbert H., Jr. Harwood
Creator: Paul W. Wirtz
Publisher: The Johns Hopkins University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $31.00
Buy New: $18.97
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Avg. Customer Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 841561
Media: Hardcover
Edition: Revised
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 184
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.4
Dimensions (in): 11.2 x 8.7 x 0.8
ISBN: 0801871905
Dewey Decimal Number: 388.4609752609044
EAN: 9780801871900
ASIN: 0801871905
Publication Date: September 29, 2003
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new item. Over 3.5 million customers served. Order now. Selling online since 1995. Few left in stock - order soon. Code: J20080921172329S
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Herbert H. Harwood here gives us a glorious picture of Baltimore in the heyday of the streetcar, combining the story of lines and equipment with a nostalgic view of Baltimore when so many of her people relied on street railways. From the late 1800s through World War II, streetcars transported Baltimore's population to and from work, play, and just about everything else. Bankers and clerks, factory workers and managers, domestics, schoolchildren, shoppers, all rode side-by-side on the streetcars regardless of economic status, level of education, or ethnic background. In a city where residences and schools were segregated, streetcar passengers sat wherever they could. In addition to being a truly democratic institution, streetcars considerably influenced Baltimore's physical growth, enabling families to live farther than ever before from workplaces and thus encouraging early suburbs. Despite rising competition from the private automobile, streetcars remained the mainstay of Baltimore's public transportation system until after World War II, when gas rationing ended and family cars multiplied. Environmentally friendly and for the most part comfortable and reliable, streetcars also had their peculiar charm. Today some people in Baltimore miss them.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Gritty, Grimey, But Oh, So Interesting... March 26, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Rails criss-crossing vitually every street in gritty downtown baltimore. A 4,000+ foot long "EL" somewhere in the central city.....trolleys traveling down dirt roads with horse-drawn carts. Trolleys over rivers and lakes. PCCs and deck-roof cars running at the same time until the end in 1963.
These are just some of the fine collection of images you will enjoy within the covers of this book. True - it is missing some key technical information on rolling stock, and a more detailed map would have been nice. But the photos in this book wil without doubt take you back to a more simpler "analog" time that existed in America.
To be sure, some of Baltimore has improved since the 1950's, but it was a time when its streecars had character, and was its main mode of transport.
For an escape back in time for the transit enthusiast, this book will not dissapoint you.
 Blue Collar Street Rails October 9, 2004
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
On one hand, a reviewer of this book COULD demand more narrative analysis of the Baltimore Transit Company as a business operation, or more details about its roster of rolling stock and maps of the routes served. What were the dynamics between the company's top leadership and the public utility commission that regulated public transit back in those days? One suspects that some colorful personalities were involved, but this book doesn't delve into that subject. A review Baltimore's streetcar operators and their work-a-day culture would have added another layer of interest, especially in light of the post-war era's rapid changes in technology and society. That is also absent.
On the other hand, this book's fascinating collection of photos and captions are the reader's reward. Resplendent streetscape details are captured in prints derived mostly from large-format, black & white negatives. While the streetcars are of course the subject, the same photos are also a window on post-war Baltimore and its unpretentious people in unposed, candid moments. This time-capsule quality alone makes this book very enjoyable. In the end, the lack of operating stats and other trivia is forgivable.
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