Discover the fascinating history of
Northern Illinois&rsquo\;s once-vast network of inter-city electric railwa
ys. This program explores the rise of these historic electric trains\, the
ir decline during the Great Depression\, and how the rise of automobiles a
nd paved highways changed American transit forever.
The presentation
highlights the remarkable resurrection of this transit history. Learn how
a 1958 land purchase allowed the Illinois Railway Museum to relocate in 19
64\, transforming a long-dormant right-of-way from the Elgin and Belvidere
Electric Company into the vibrant 5+ mile historic railway operating toda
y.
Many years ago\, there existed an extensive network of inter-city electric railways that had served citizens of Northern Illinoi s\; the Great Depression brought an end all too soon. Advances in paved ro ads\, the advent of affordable automobiles\, trucks and buses all helped p ut these electric trains out of existence.
\n
Today\, the Illin
ois Railway Museum exists on a 5+ mile segment of one of these former rail
ways\, the Elgin and Belvidere Electric Co. This story will conclude with
building the museum's railway on the long-dormant former right of way.&nbs
p\; A 1958 purchase of former interurban right of way gave us a place to m
ove the museum from North Chicago in the 1st \;half of 1964\; the rest
is history.