{"id":191,"date":"2015-07-22T09:38:40","date_gmt":"2015-07-22T13:38:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/?p=191"},"modified":"2018-01-08T13:55:17","modified_gmt":"2018-01-08T18:55:17","slug":"death-and-rebirth-of-the-dallas-streetcar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2015\/07\/22\/death-and-rebirth-of-the-dallas-streetcar\/","title":{"rendered":"Death and Rebirth of the Dallas Streetcar"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"1919<\/a>

C. Weichsel Co. 1919 Map and guide of Dallas & suburbs., University of North Texas, The Portal to Texas History; crediting University of Texas at Arlington Library.<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n

This spring, DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transportation) started service on its new streetcar route, a 1.6 mile stretch connecting Oak Cliff commuters with Union Station in Dallas. The city\u2019s new streetcar is the latest in a trend sweeping urban centers across the country. (Tucson, Arizona launched a successful streetcar project in 2014, and Kansas City has high hopes for its new transit system, which should open next year.) Of course, the streetcars cropping up today are nothing but modern versions of those our cities so often utilized in the first half of the twentieth century.<\/p>\r\n

As this news script<\/a> from the KXAS\/NBC-5 collection<\/a> shows, streetcars ran through Dallas from 1872 until 1956, when the streetcars performed their last run. At its peak, Dallas had over three-hundred streetcars crisscrossing the city, carrying residents from place to place. The map<\/a> shown features interurban streetcar lines as they existed in 1919. The Western History Department at the Denver Public Library also has a great photograph<\/a> in its digital collections of a group of men and women waiting for a Dallas streetcar, taken by Robert W. Richardson in February 1946.<\/p>\r\n

From the start of public transportation in Dallas, private corporations were in charge of services, the last of which was the Dallas Transit Company. The city purchased DTC in 1964, and it continued to run under the same name until 1984, when DART assumed control of operations.<\/p>\r\n

In 1954, The city council ordered the transit company to dispose of all the streetcars within two years. Thus, transportation in Dallas changed in ways that happened in other American cities: buses emerged, along with a much heavier reliance on individual transportation via automobile. A large part of this new aversion to public transportation resulted from suburbanization. People simply didn\u2019t want to live in the hustle and bustle of the city anymore.<\/p>\r\n

Today, more and more people are moving back into the cities, resulting in the need for more (and different) modes of public transportation. Two future phases of the new Dallas streetcar are currently underway. The first is a connection to the Bishops Arts Center, and the second will connect the Civic Center and Reunion Districts.<\/p>\r\n

The KXAS\/NBC-5 collection<\/a> is perhaps the largest collection of local news in the country. With scripts, video footage, and log books from 1951 onward, the collection showcases the evolution of the southwest metroplex. Currently, a selection of news scripts and video footage from the year 1956 is available for viewing on The Portal to Texas History<\/a>.
\r\n -by Alexandra Traxinger Sch\u00fctz<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This spring, DART (Dallas Area Rapid Transportation) started service on its new streetcar route, a 1.6 mile stretch connecting Oak Cliff commuters with Union Station in Dallas. The city\u2019s new streetcar is the latest in a trend sweeping urban centers across the country. (Tucson, Arizona launched a successful streetcar project in 2014, and Kansas City… Read more »<\/a>","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[26,27,25],"class_list":["post-191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dart","tag-public-transportation","tag-streetcar"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p60UnY-35","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":445,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2016\/01\/20\/university-of-dallas-celebrates-60-years\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":0},"title":"University of Dallas Celebrates 60 Years","author":"Alexandra","date":"January 20, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"This year, the University of Dallas celebrates its sixtieth year of education and enlightenment. In September of 1956, 96 students began undergraduate studies at the newly-founded University of Dallas, located in what is now Irving. Today, nearly 3,000 students attend the University. Bishop Thomas K. Gorman became chancellor of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Bishop Gorman\"","block_context":{"text":"Bishop Gorman","link":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/tag\/bishop-gorman\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"University of Dallas Advertisement, UNTA_AR0327-020-002","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/10\/UNTA_AR0327-020-002_01-400x514.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":126,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2015\/05\/19\/the-texas-triangle\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":1},"title":"The Texas Triangle","author":"UNT Special Collections","date":"May 19, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 The collections being exposed within the Southwest Metroplex blog all share the chaos and excitement that overcame the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the decades following World War II. UNT\u2019s Special Collections department houses items documenting the enormous population boom in North Texas, tremendous strides made in transportation and urban\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"dfwstats","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/05\/dfwstats-400x502.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":201,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2015\/07\/15\/navigating-the-trinity-waterway\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":2},"title":"Navigating the Trinity Waterway","author":"Alexandra","date":"July 15, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"This spring, most North Texas lakes and rivers saw a sudden, sharp surplus in their water levels, and the Trinity River was certainly among them. Areas of Dallas were flooded by the river at the end of May, causing many businesses to close. It also gave several citizens cause for\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Canals\"","block_context":{"text":"Canals","link":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/tag\/canals\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"trinity","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/07\/trinity.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/07\/trinity.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/07\/trinity.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/07\/trinity.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":104,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2015\/04\/29\/the-texas-turnpike-authority-and-the-trinity-route\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":3},"title":"The Texas Turnpike Authority and the Trinity Route","author":"UNT Special Collections","date":"April 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"It may be difficult to believe that, until 1966, a non-stop route between eastern Dallas and western Fort Worth didn\u2019t exist. Today, the highways connecting the two cities, as well as all the cities in between them, make Dallas-Fort Worth inseparable. The two stretches of road that contributed most to\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"trinityroute01","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/trinityroute01-740x587.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/trinityroute01-740x587.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/trinityroute01-740x587.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2014\/06\/13\/red-river-showdown\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":4},"title":"Red River Showdown","author":"Morgan","date":"June 13, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"With the much celebrated announcement this week that the Red River Showdown would remain at the Cotton Bowl until the year 2025, an 85 year-old Dallas tradition was upheld. Each year, Dallas becomes awash in a sea of burnt orange and red as legions of fans from north and south\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/CottonBowl.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/CottonBowl.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/CottonBowl.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/04\/CottonBowl.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":313,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/2015\/09\/21\/the-statler-hilton-dallas\/","url_meta":{"origin":191,"position":5},"title":"The Statler-Hilton Dallas","author":"Alexandra","date":"September 21, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"\u00a0 \u00a0 In 1956, Dallas gained what was hailed as the finest hotel of modern times: the Statler-Hilton, located downtown at 1914 Commerce Street. The building boasted amenities unheard of at the time, including elevator music, custom 21\u201d Westinghouse television sets, as well as conference rooms and ballrooms on the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Conrad Hilton\"","block_context":{"text":"Conrad Hilton","link":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/tag\/conrad-hilton\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Helicopter on Statler-Hilton Helipad","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/09\/metapth66941_l_01003-00448_01-740x894.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/09\/metapth66941_l_01003-00448_01-740x894.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/14\/2015\/09\/metapth66941_l_01003-00448_01-740x894.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=191"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":570,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191\/revisions\/570"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.library.unt.edu\/southwest-metroplex\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}