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{{short description|Mass transit system (1892–1949)}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2022}}
{{More citations needed|date=August 2013}}
{{Infobox rail
|railroad_name = San Diego Electric Railway
|logo_filename =
|logo_size = 200px
|system_map = San Diego Electric Railway 1925.svg
|map_caption = San Diego Electric Railways network
|map_size =
|image = Class 1 Streetcar 5th and Broadway-San Diego-1915.JPG
|image_size =
|image_caption = A [[San Diego Class 1 streetcar]] at 5th and Broadway, {{circa|1915}}
|marks = SDER
|locale = [[California]]
|start_year = 1892
|end_year = 1949
|gauge = {{Track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}
|old_gauge = {{Track gauge|3ft6in|lk=on}}<br />(until about 1898)
|electrification = {{600 V DC|conductor=overhead}}
|length =
|hq_city = [[San Diego, California]]
}}
The '''San Diego Electric Railway''' ('''SDERy''') was a [[mass transit]] system in [[San Diego County, California]], United States. The system utilized 600 [[volt]] [[direct current]] [[streetcars]]<ref name="hwd">{{harvb|Demoro|1986|p=15}}</ref> and (in later years) [[buses]].
The SDERy was established by sugar heir and land developer [[John D. Spreckels]] in 1892. The railroad's original network consisted of five routes: the Fifth Street and Logan Heights Lines, the First and "D" Streets Lines, the Depot Line, the Ferry Line, and the "K" Street Shuttle. The company would establish additional operating divisions as traffic demands led to the formation of new lines.
At its peak, the SDERy's routes would operate throughout the greater [[San Diego, California|San Diego]] area over some {{convert|165
The few surviving pieces of rolling stock are on display at the [[Pacific Southwest Railway Museum]] in Campo, the [[San Diego Electric Railway Association]] in [[National City, California|National City]], and the [[Orange Empire Railway Museum]] in [[Perris, California]].
== History ==
=== Predecessors ===
[[
The following year on November 9, the first electric-powered streetcar made a test run on new tracks up Broadway to Kettner Boulevard and on to "Old Town". Regular electric streetcar service was inaugurated on November{{nbsp}}19 on the San Diego and Old Town Street Railway,<ref>{{cite news |title=City And County |access-date=11 November 2024 |newspaper=San Diego Daily Sun |via=Newspapers.com |date=November 19, 1887 |___location=San Diego, California |page=5 |edition=Evening |volume=XIII |number=105 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-diego-sun-city-and-county/158818287/}} {{free access}}</ref> making it the first electric railway on the West Coast{{sfnp|Mengers|2017|p=22}} and the second in the country to use the "ground return" for electric current.{{cn|date=November 2024}} On December{{nbsp}}31, 1887, the Electric Rapid Transit Company (ERTC) put an electric streetcar into regular operation on Fourth Street as far as the Florence Hotel on Fir Street.{{sfnp|Mengers|2017|p=24}} When ERTC failed, the San Diego Cable Railway (SDCR) was incorporated in July 1889 to replace it.{{sfnp|Mengers|2017|p=22}} The opening day of the SDCR was June{{nbsp}}7, 1890,<ref>{{cite news |title=The Cable Railway System. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-san-diegan-the-cable-railway-s/158761202/ |access-date=10 November 2024 |newspaper=The Daily San Diegan |via=Newspapers.com |date=June 7, 1890 |volume=V |number=1667 |edition=Evening |___location=San Diego, California |page=1}} {{free access}}</ref> and it soon opened "Mission Cliffs Gardens", a small recreation park (one of San Diego's first public recreation areas) overlooking Mission Valley, as an end-of-the-line attraction for cable car patrons.
[[File:Opening Day, San Diego Cable Railway, June 7, 1890.jpg|thumb|right|Opening Day on the San Diego Cable Railway; June 7, 1890]]
=== San Diego Electric Railway Company ===
[[File:Double-decker San Diego Electric Railway, 5th & Market, Sept 21, 1892.jpg|thumb|right|SDERy double-decker Car No. 1 pauses at the intersection of 5th Street & Market Street during its inaugural run on September 21, 1892.]]
By November{{nbsp}}30, 1891 [[John Diedrich Spreckels|John D. Spreckels]] incorporated the San Diego Electric Railway Company (SDERy). On January{{nbsp}}30, the SDERy purchased the SDSCC and the majority of its assets for $115,000 (${{format price|{{inflation|US|115000|1891}} }} in {{inflation year|US}} adjusted for inflation); over the next few years the company would also acquire the competing Park Belt Line and the Ocean Beach Railroad. Plans were made to convert all existing lines to traction, and ten single-truck, single-trolley, open platform wooden cars were subsequently purchased from the [[J. G. Brill Company]]. Double-decker Car No.{{nbsp}}1, the first such electrically operated car in the United States, made the inaugural run on September{{nbsp}}21, 1892, with many of the city's notables aboard. A few weeks later, the SDCR completed its last run,<ref>{{cite news |title=The Cable Road Has Stopped |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-san-diego-sun-the-cable-road-has-sto/158826582/ |access-date=11 November 2024 |newspaper=The Sun |via=Newspapers.com |date=October 15, 1892 |volume=XXII |number=227 |___location=San Diego, California |page=4}} {{free access}}</ref> the company having declared bankruptcy earlier in the year. At the end of 1892, the line had grown to {{convert|16.70|mi|km}} of aggregated system track ({{convert|12.21|mi|km|disp=or}} of single electrified track with {{convert|4.49|mi|km|disp=or}} for horse-drawn cars). Many new electrified lines were constructed during the coming years.
In August 1895, the Citizens Traction Company (CTC) was formed and purchased the remains of the SDCR for $17,600, adapting the line to electric operation in order to compete with the SDERy. On July{{nbsp}}28, 1896,<ref>{{cite news |title=San Diego Items. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-record-san-diego-items/158761447/ |access-date=10 November 2024 |newspaper=The National City Record |via=Newspapers.com |date=July 30, 1896 |___location=National City, California |page=8}} {{free access}}</ref> the first converted trolley car ran the entire length of the {{convert|4.49|mi|km|adj=on}} long CTC line. However, by February 1897 financial difficulties forced the CTC to go into receivership. Elisa Babcock, as agent for the SDERy, bought the properties and franchises of the CTC in March 1898 for $19,000 plus "fees and costs." The track gauge was subsequently [[Track gauge conversion|widened]] from {{RailGauge|3ft6in|lk=on}} [[Narrow gauge railway|narrow gauge]] to {{RailGauge|ussg|allk=on}}.
In 1905 Spreckels had a new power generating plant built to accommodate the additional loads imposed by the expanding streetcar network. He announced the following year the formation of [[San Diego and Arizona Railway]] (SD&A) and plans for a {{convert|148|mi|km|0|adj=on}} line between San Diego and [[El Centro, California|El Centro]]. The Third Avenue Streetcar Line began operation.{{when|date=December 2019}} The SDERy logged {{convert|798,152|mi|km|adj=pre|car}}.{{when|date=December 2019}} By 1907 the Third Avenue Streetcar Line was extended to the future community of [[Mission Hills, San Diego|Mission Hills]], and was briefly renamed the Mission Hills Line. Spreckels forced a ballot initiative in 1910 to amend his charter with the City of San Diego to give him more than 25 years on his leases to operate streetcar service. With this greater security he was able to acquire major loans for service expansion and infrastructure. The next year, the Imperial Avenue operating division was established downtown. Spreckels had a second power generating plant built at Kettner Boulevard and "E" Street, as the 1905 plant could no longer provide sufficient capacity.
Ordered by Spreckels, with guidance by William Clayton and design by Homer MacNutt and Abel A. Butterworth, 24 [[Arts and Crafts movement|Arts and Crafts-style]] streetcars (to be known as the [[San Diego Class 1 Streetcars|'Class 1' streetcar]]) were delivered to San Diego in 1912. The following year, construction of a new brick car barn located at Adams Avenue and Florida Street was completed. By the end of 1914 the SDERy owned {{convert|38.9|mi|km}} of single track and {{convert|22.4|mi|km}} of double track, for a total of {{convert|83.7|mi|km}} of "equivalent single track".
The 1915 [[Panama–California Exposition]] in [[Balboa Park (San Diego)|Balboa Park]] spurred the next phase of transportation growth. A new electric car line was constructed up 12th Street to the park's entrance with 101 new cars from the [[St. Louis Car Company]], and the Adams Avenue operating division was established in [[Normal Heights]]. San Diego's original [[Victorian architecture|Victorian]] style [[Santa Fe Depot (San Diego)|train depot]] was demolished and replaced with a new [[Mission Revival Style architecture|Mission Revival Style]] [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway|Santa Fe]] depot building. The SDERy logged {{convert|3,521,571|mi|km|adj=pre|car}}. The "Great Flood" in 1916 caused significant damage, washing out several rail lines. [[World War I]] increased the cost of railway construction materials by 50 to 150 percent. There was a significant increase in the private ownership of automobiles, and the SDERy began to lose revenue to private "Jitney Buses". On November 15, 1919, the "golden spike" was driven and construction of the SD&A was ceremonially completed at a cost of $18 million (three times the original estimate). Spreckels announced plans in 1920 to discontinue service on several rail lines to offset expenses, leading to approval of "zone fares". The SDERy purchased new streetcars that required only one driver/conductor instead of two;{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=4}} older cars were retrofitted to reduce labor costs. Spreckels sold his power generating plants to the Consolidated Gas and Electric Company.
=== The first motor buses ===
In 1921 the first motor bus went into service operating between [[National City, California|National City]] and [[Chula Vista, California|Chula Vista]]. "Number One" had hard rubber tires, two-wheel mechanical brakes, a four-cylinder engine, and a plywood body. On March{{nbsp}}17, 1923, the SDERy began its last major rail line expansion to [[Mission Beach, California|Mission Beach]] ("Belmont Park"), [[Pacific Beach, California|Pacific Beach]], and [[La Jolla, California|La Jolla]]. $2.5 million were spent on rails, Mission Revival Style terminals and substations, and [[Egyptian Revival architecture|Egyptian Revival Style]] stations, and $800,000 were spent on the acquisition of 50 new cars.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=7}} Construction was completed in 1925. Car No.{{nbsp}}400, an all-steel model with a closed body and the first on the SDERy to feature a [[pantograph (rail)|pantograph]]-type current collector, was delivered in December 1923. All 50 pantograph-equipped cars would eventually have trolley poles installed at each end due to the pantographs' poor performance.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=4}}
[[File:Streetcar stop at the California Pacific International Exposition (cropped).jpg|thumb|The streetcar stop for the [[California Pacific International Exposition]] at [[Balboa Park (San Diego)|Balboa Park]], {{c.|1935}}.]]
By 1930 buses began to replace street cars from Ocean Beach to La Jolla, and 222 new buses were added to the fleet. Ridership and revenue decreased but SDERy was able to weather the economic downturn. The 1935 [[California Pacific International Exposition]] opened in Balboa Park without the need for expanded transit service. In 1936 SDERy ordered 25 single-end [[PCC car|Presidents Conference Committee]] (PCC) cars from the [[St. Louis Car Company]], and was among the first streetcar systems in the United States to use [[Streamliner|streamlined]] units.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=16}} The cars were designated as Class 6. An order for three additional units was placed the following year.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=20}}
[[World War II]] turned San Diego into a "boom town" again. The population of the city increased due to an influx of military personnel and defense-related industries, and ridership on public transit rose 600 percent during the war years. Used transit vehicles were purchased from around the nation, and more electrical substations were built (one in the basement of the Spreckels Theatre Building on Broadway). The $2.5-million rail line built in the 1920s to the beaches was ripped out, along with the elaborate stations and terminals, and replaced with a bus line. By 1942 the combined streetcar and bus lines carried 94 million people. Additional streetcars were brought in on loan from [[New York City]], [[Salt Lake City]], and [[Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania]] to help keep up with demand.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|pp=22–23}} Combined ridership in 1944 led to more than 146 million trips. In 1946 SDERy began to phase out [[streetcar line]]s and replace them with [[bus route]]s. By the following year, only three street car lines would remain in operation.
=== New owners and systematic conversion to buses ===
On July 26, 1948, the Western Transit Company (WTC), owned by Jesse Haugh, bought SDERy for $5.5 million.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=4}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Transit in San Diego: ASCE Anniversary Project |url=http://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/2002-1/holle.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121004181539/http://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/2002-1/holle.htm |archive-date=October 4, 2012 |quote=Jesse Haugh's Western Transit Company bought SDERy for $5.5 million, July 26, 1948.}}</ref> Haugh was also president of [[Key System]] and an executive of [[Pacific Electric Railway]]. The following month 13 new 45-passenger buses were placed into service. In September 1948 the WTC announced that the SDERy would henceforth be known as the San Diego Transit System (SDTS). A new emblem (consisting of a pair of wings with a shield in the center) and slogan, "Safety, Courtesy, Service," were adopted. In January 1949 the SDTS borrowed $720,000 for the purchase of additional new buses, and made an application to the State [[Public Utilities Commission]] (PUC) to discontinue streetcar service, which the PUC granted in March. Sponsored by the Pacific Railroad Society of Los Angeles, a "farewell to the streetcars" excursion was held, operated over the remaining trackage.
The following month 45 new [[General Motors Corporation|GM]] buses (each costing $20,000){{citation needed|date=August 2016}} paraded down Broadway to mark the retirement of the street cars;<ref name=EndDTA /> free rides were offered during the procession. Rail service on the ''SDERy'' came to an end on April 24 as Car No. 446 pulled into the Adams Avenue car barn,<ref name=EndDTA>{{cite news |title=From the Day's Wire |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-times-advocate/158823835/ |access-date=11 November 2024 |newspaper=Daily Times-Advocate |via=Newspapers.com |date=April 23, 1949 |volume=XXXVII |number=206 |___location=Escondido, California |page=1}} {{free access}}</ref> making San Diego the first major [[Southwestern United States|southwestern]] city to eliminate streetcars and convert to an all-bus transit system. In May 1949 work crews began removing the overhead trolley lines and tracks on the loop at Santa Fe Depot. In 1950, 17 of the PCC model cars were sold to the El Paso City Lines (EPCL) for service on the international loop between [[El Paso, Texas]],{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=4}} and the Mexican border city of [[Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua]]. A few years later, three more PCCs were sold to EPCL. All remaining Class 5 cars and the three "service" cars were purchased by the Allied Salvage Company for scrap. The eight remaining PCCs were purchased in August 1957 by the San Diego Mill Supply Company. Car No. 167 and Car No.{{nbsp}}508 are preserved at the [[Southern California Railway Museum]] in [[Perris, California]], and Car No.{{nbsp}}528 was obtained by the San Diego Railway Historical Society for preservation and exhibition.
=== Revival: San Diego Trolley system ===
{{Main|San Diego Trolley}}
After years of planning and development, the "[[San Diego Trolley]]" (a new [[interurban streetcar|interurban]] [[light rail]] mass transit system) made its inaugural run on July 19, 1981, on the {{convert|15.9|mi|km|adj=on}} long "South Line" between downtown and the Mexican border.{{sfnp|Copeland|2002|p=27}} The following week San Diego Trolley began revenue service; San Diego would become known in transit circles as "The city that started the 'light rail craze' in the United States".{{citation needed|date=December 2019}}
In August 1996, three "Class 1" streetcars were saved for San Diego. These cars, numbered 126, 128, and 138, had been ordered by John Spreckels in anticipation of the 1915 [[Panama–California Exposition]]. The logo of the SDERy is still visible. The San Diego Historic Site Board recognized the three native "Class 1" streetcars with the official designation of San Diego Landmark #339. In February 2005, the San Diego Electric Railway Association salvaged the body shell of Car No. 357 (formerly of the [[Bellingham, Washington]] streetcar system) from a Downtown restaurant site where it had been used as a dining room since 1972.
In December 2005, the San Diego Vintage Trolley Co. purchased three former [[San Francisco Municipal Railway]] PCC cars (one numbered 529).<ref name="silverlinecarrestoration" /> Car No. 529 was later fully restored for public rail service. Three other PCC cars, two from SEPTA and one from New Jersey (531-533), were subsequently purchased.<ref name="silverlinecarrestoration">{{Cite web |title=Discovering Old PCCs |url=http://www.sdvintagetrolley.com/restore_disc_old_cars.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120328121647/http://www.sdvintagetrolley.com/restore_disc_old_cars.aspx |archive-date=March 28, 2012 |access-date=August 18, 2011 |publisher=San Diego Vintage Trolley, Inc.}}</ref> In March 2014, MTS took possession of a second 1946 PCC streetcar, destined to join public service as Car #530.<ref name="Car530" /> It was estimated that the mostly cosmetic restoration work required to restore Car #530 to service would take six to eight months.<ref name="Car530">{{Cite web |title=MTS Takes Delivery of Historic Vintage Trolley PCC #530 |url=http://www.sdmts.com/MTS/MTSTakesDeliveryofHistoricVintageTrolleyPCC530.asp |access-date=March 13, 2014 |website=sdmts.com |publisher=San Diego Metropolitan Transit System}}</ref> The PCC cars were planned to run on a loop route around downtown using existing San Diego Trolley tracks. [[San Diego Metropolitan Transit System]], in a partnership with the San Diego historic streetcar society, began select weekday, weekend and holiday mid-day service in August 2011 on this new [[heritage streetcar]] [[Silver Line (San Diego Trolley)|Silver Line]], which operates around [[downtown San Diego]] using the renovated [[PCC streetcar]] #529. By March 2011 MTS began work on a study to evaluate the feasibility of reconnecting [[Balboa Park (San Diego)|Balboa Park]], the [[San Diego Zoo]], and downtown San Diego through a fixed-guideway, [[San Diego Trolley#Proposed Balboa Park streetcar line|electrified streetcar line]]<ref name="MTS City/Park Streetcar Feasibility Study">{{Cite web |title=MTS City/Park Streetcar Feasibility Study |url=http://www.sdmts.com/streetcarstudy.asp |access-date=July 6, 2011}}</ref> that might operate as an extension of the Silver Line and might be operated with other restored heritage streetcars.
== Routes ==
[[File:Streetcar barn--Mission Cliffs Gardens on Adams Avenue circa 1915.jpg|thumb|right|A view of the SDERy streetcar barn located at "Mission Cliffs Gardens" on Adams Avenue, {{circa|1915}}]]
Routes in 1925 – roughly the system's largest extent – were as follows:<ref>Line numbers taken from {{cite map |url=http://www.hillquest.com/transportation/images/map_streetcar.gif |title=Evolution of the San Diego Cityscape |first=W.J. |last=Hermiston |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061115014826/http://www.hillquest.com/transportation/images/map_streetcar.gif |archive-date=November 15, 2006}}; detailed description of routes taken by each line from {{cite map |title=San Diego Electric Railway Company System Trackage Map as of January 1925 |date=1956 |last=Dodge |first=R.V. |url=https://www.raremaps.com/gallery/detail/94905/san-diego-electric-railway-company-system-trackage-map-as-of-dodge |via=Barry Lawrence Ruderman Antique Maps Inc. }}</ref>
* 1 – 5th Ave. to [[Hillcrest, San Diego|Hillcrest]], then via University – Park Blvd. - Adams to 30th St. (just west of Normal Heights)
* 2 – east on Broadway South Park – via 30th St. to North Park
* 3 – via Washington and Fort Stockton Ave. to [[Mission Hills, San Diego|Mission Hills]]
* 4 – Imperial Ave. to 33rd and Commercial, [[Stockton, San Diego|Stockton]]
* 5 – north from downtown on 1st Ave.; east form downtown on Market, south on 25th St., east on Ocean View Blvd. to 39th St. in [[Mountain View, San Diego|Mountain View]]
* 7 – via Park Blvd. through [[Balboa Park (San Diego)|Balboa Park]] to [[Hillcrest, San Diego|Hillcrest]], then east along University Ave. through [[North Park, San Diego|North Park]] to [[City Heights, San Diego|City Heights]], then known as East San Diego
* 9 – serving marina at end of Market St.
* 11 – via 5th Ave. to [[Hillcrest, San Diego|Hillcrest]], then via University, and 30th to Adams Ave.; along the length of Adams to [[Normal Heights, San Diego|Normal Heights]] and [[Kensington, San Diego|Kensington]]
* 12 – [[Logan Heights, San Diego|Logan Heights]], [[National City, California|National City]] to [[Chula Vista, California|Chula Vista]]
* 13 – Kettner/Hancock to Rosecrans to La Playa, [[Point Loma]]
* 14 – Ocean Beach<ref name="jsdh">{{Cite journal |last=Zelma Bays Locker |date=Fall 1977 |title=Remember old number 16? Recollections of the La Jolla Street Car Line |url=https://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/1977/october/sixteen |journal=Journal of San Diego History |volume=23 |issue=4}}</ref>
* 15 – reserved for holiday use to Mission Beach Amusement Park<ref name=jsdh />
* 16 – Ocean Beach – Mission Beach – La Jolla<ref name=jsdh />
== See also ==
{{Portal|California}}
{{colbegin}}
* [[Los Angeles Railway]]
* [[Pacific Electric Railway Company]]
* [[Transportation in San Diego County]]
* [[List of streetcar systems in the United States]] (all-time list)
* [[San Diego and Arizona Eastern Railway]]
* [[San Diego and Arizona Railway]]
* [[San Diego Trolley]]
* [[North County Transit District]]{{colend}}
== References ==
=== Footnotes ===
{{reflist|2}}
=== Bibliography ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book |last=Copeland |first=P. Allen |title=California Trolleys In Color, Volume 1: San Diego and Los Angeles |date=2002 |publisher=Morning Sun Books, Inc. |isbn=1-58248-076-1 |___location=[[Scotch Plains, NJ]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Demoro |first=Harre W. |title=California's Electric Railways |publisher=[[Interurban Press]] |year=1986 |isbn=0-916374-74-2 |___location=[[Glendale, California]] }}
* {{Cite book |last=Mengers |first=Douglas W. |title=San Diego Trolleys. |date=2017 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing Inc |isbn=978-1-4396-6234-2 |oclc=1002581853}}
{{refend}}
=== Further reading ===
* {{Cite book |last=Dodge |first=Richard V. |title=Rails of the Silver Gate |publisher=[[Golden West Books]] |year=1960 |isbn=0-87095-019-3 |___location=[[San Marino, CA]]}}
* {{Cite book |last=Thompson |first=Gregory Lee |url=https://archive.org/details/passengertrainin0047thom |title=The Passenger Train in the Motor Age: California's Rail and Bus Industries, 1910–1941 |publisher=[[Ohio State University Press]] |year=1993 |isbn=0-8142-0609-3 |___location=[[Columbus, OH]] |url-access=registration}}
== External links ==
* [http://sandiegohistoricstreetcars.org/index.htm The Home of the Historic San Diego Class 1 Streetcars]
* {{Cite web |title=Feasibility of the Historic Streetcar |url=http://www.northparkmainstreet.com/pdf/Mobility%20Plan%20Chapter%2010.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041102011355/http://www.northparkmainstreet.com/pdf/Mobility%20Plan%20Chapter%2010.pdf |archive-date=November 2, 2004 |access-date=November 29, 2005 |website=North Park Main Street Association}} — report documents the efforts of the North Park Main Street Association to reintroduce "Class 1" streetcar service along a historic 3.5 mile line in the San Diego community of [[North Park, San Diego|North Park]].
* {{Cite web |title=General Motors' Destruction of California Transit Systems |url=http://www.trainweb.org/mts/ctc/ctc06.html |access-date=November 29, 2005 |website=Modern Transit Society, Inc.}} — documentation of GM front companies and hostile takeovers of "Key System" transit companies in California.
* {{Cite web |title=San Diego's Early Streetcars |url=http://sandiegohistory.org/collections/streetcar/streetcar.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051120040811/http://sandiegohistory.org/collections/streetcar/streetcar.htm |archive-date=November 20, 2005 |access-date=November 29, 2005 |website=San Diego Historical Society}} — photos and text from an article in the January 1956 issue of ''The Journal of San Diego History''.
* {{Cite web |title=Metropolitan Transit Development Board |url=http://www.sdcommute.com/ |access-date=November 29, 2005 |archive-date=February 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110221040004/http://sdcommute.com/ |url-status=dead }}
* {{Cite web |title=Orange Empire Railway Museum |url=http://www.oerm.org |access-date=November 29, 2005}}
* {{Cite web |title=Pacific Railroad Society |url=http://www.pacificrailroadsociety.org |access-date=November 29, 2005}}
* {{Cite web |title=Pacific Southwest Railway Museum |url=http://www.sdrm.org |access-date=November 29, 2005}}
* {{Cite web |title=San Diego Electric Railway Association |url=http://www.sdera.org |access-date=November 29, 2005}}
* {{Cite web |title=San Diego Historical Society |url=http://www.sandiegohistory.org |access-date=November 29, 2005}}
* {{Cite web |title=1940s Photos of San Diego Streetcars |date=April 7, 2015 |url=https://coololdphotos.com/1940s-photos-of-san-diego-streetcars/ |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=February 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224173557/https://coololdphotos.com/1940s-photos-of-san-diego-streetcars/ |url-status=dead }}
{{Public Transportation in Greater San Diego}}
{{Streetcars in California}}
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[[Category:Public transportation in San Diego County, California]]
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[[Category:Transportation companies based in California]]
[[Category:Defunct public transport operators in the United States]]
[[Category:1892 establishments in California]]
[[Category:History of San Diego]]
[[Category:3 ft 6 in gauge railways in the United States]]
[[Category:Defunct town tramway systems by city|San Diego]]
[[Category:600 V DC railway electrification]]
[[Category:1949 disestablishments in California]]
[[Category:Streetcars in California]]
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