East Troy Electric Railroad Museum

SEPTA PCC Streetcar 2185

Built: 1948, St Louis Car Co., for Philadelphia Transportation Company
Acquired: Purchased 1996
Motors: Four 50hp
Length: 48 feet
Weight: 22 tons
Photo by John DeLamater,
at the Train to the Trolleys event, May, 2000

As the Roaring Twenties drew to a close, the Depression and the growing abundance of automobiles drastically reduced ridership on every streetcar line in the country. In order to bring the technology of the street railway up to modern standards, a number of streetcar company executives and suppliers met to develop a new streetcar design. The goal was a comfortable, quiet and fast car that could be mass produced inexpensively. The result was the President's Conference Committee (PCC) car. Based on a brilliant truck design, the car was all-electric, including the brakes. The cars were basically operated by foot pedals, so that a single person could operate the car and handle money and transfers without stopping. The exterior was consciously designed to give a streamlined appearance. SEPTA car 2185 is an outstanding example of the PCC design. Built in 1948 as part of a group of 60 cars, it is a single-end design, with operating controls at one rather than both ends. Like most PCCs built after WWII, it features standee windows, the oval windows below the roof line. The car was completely overhauled by SEPTA in the late 1970s. It operated in Philadelphia into the 1990s. It arrived in East Troy the week of Thanksgiving, 1994. It operates occasionally; frequent operation is hindered by the lack of controls at the rear end of the car.

An excellent monograph about PCC streetcars by volunteer and carowner Tom Matola is in the PCC streetcars page.