By Norman Delucchi

During the first decade of the last century, it was possible for only five cents, to take a two-mile ride on Prescott's one and only streetcar line, The Prescott and Mount Union Railway. The route went east on Gurley Street from about Garden Street (near Park Avenue) to Arizona Avenue, and then turned north along the Citizen's Cemetery and finally east to Fort Whipple.

In 1881, Werner van Siemens developed one of the first successful electrical powered streetcars operating in Berlin, Germany. Prior to this time, power for streetcars was either animal power or an underground cable to which the cars were attached. The power for the Berlin cars was an electrically charged rail, similar to a model train setup. Having this third rail limited the voltage and presented a number of safety issues. 

Frank J. Sprague in Richmond, Virginia, overcame the safety problems in 1888. His solution was to hang the power lines above the tracks. The car obtained power through a pole with a trolley (a device, usually in the form of a wheel, that carries electric current from a wire) that rode on top the power line. This is believed to be how the name 'trolley car' came about. 

With the advent of safe power distribution, it seemed like every city and town wanted to put in a streetcar system. These systems ranged from lines less than a mile in length to over 70 miles, connecting cities and, in some cases, even crossing state borders. 

Prescott wanted to be in the thick of things with regards to streetcars, granting a franchise in 1892 to Frank Murphy, whom many considered Yavapai County's number one entrepreneur. However, at that same time, Murphy had his hands into a number of projects including bringing the Santa Fe, Prescott, and Phoenix Railway to town, planning additional railroads into the mining districts, and monitoring his personal investments in various mines in the county. Possibly, because of the activities just listed, or for some other unknown reason(s), Murphy never exercised his franchise to build a streetcar line in Prescott. 

However, Murphy, even though he did not exercise his franchise, continued his activities with Prescott's streetcar endeavors. On April 23, 1902, by city ordinance, a new franchise was issued to Frank L. Wright to "lay, construct, equip, maintain and operate for profit, a single or double track street railway for the transportation of passengers and freight, in the city of Prescott, Arizona, to be propelled by electric power." Frank Wright at this time was also the President and General Manager of the Prescott Electric Company. Wright's original plans were to extend the streetcar line towards the Groom Creek area and provide freight and passenger service to the mines near Mt. Union. This was probably his justification for naming the line 'Prescott and Mount Union Railway.' 

In an editorial comment in the Arizona Journal-Miner dated May 16, 1902, the Journal-Miner stated that Murphy communicated to the newspaper five pages of typed objectives to the street railway franchise. The editorial further stated that "over one-half is an interrogatory nature asking for the opinion of the Journal-Miner on the ten different points with a direct question to the Journal-Miner in the form as follows: 'Do you, or do you not think, etc.'" The editorial staff of the Journal-Miner objected to "being on the witness stand... hence declines to take up space which these interrogatories would occupy." However, the very next day's edition of the paper published Murphy's ten objections to the franchise with replies to each of the objections. One objection that ultimately resulted in a change to the franchise was significant restrictions on the carrying of freight. The objection by Murphy may have been raised to avoid any competition with his proposal and the Santa Fe railroad's plans to service the mines. The line to Groom Creek and beyond was never built, most likely because of the lack of anticipated freight revenue. 

The original line built along Gurley from about the area of Garden Street and Park Avenue on the west to just past Virginia Avenue on the east with a short line north on Cortez Street to the car barn was just over a mile in length. "Today will make the beginning of a new era in the industrial progress of the city of Prescott. Today May 19, 1903, sees the beginning of work on the first electric street railway in northern Arizona, and Prescott now takes her place among the up to date cities of the west." So began an article in the Arizona Journal-Miner of May 19, 1903. The article stated that the first load of material was being unloaded and hauled to the route of the new electric street railway. The article described future plans for the electric line, a line "from the depot to run south on Cortez street to the southern limits of the city", a "line extending several miles out into the mining districts, passing south through the Groom Creek section, to Mt. Union and adjacent mining camps and on into the Crook canyon country." None of these planned extensions ever came about. One assumption is that the restrictions on carrying freight could not cost-justify the extensions. The only extension ever completed was the line to Ft. Whipple. 

The exact date of the first run of the streetcar is not known, however the first ride with Prescott's city dignitaries was made on May 27, 1904. "The Courier man yesterday took a ride over the line of the Prescott and Mount Union electric railway, and can say that he saw no difference between that ride and several he took in Los Angeles and San Diego. The car is comfortable and glides over the rails smoothly. There is a mile of the track completed, and this is but the commencement of a system which will connect Prescott with mining camps and suburban resorts which will do much toward building up this city and section," quoted the Prescott Morning Courier of May 28, 1904. 

"Notable Event In The Progress Of The City," read the headline to an article in the November 15, 1905, edition of the Arizona Journal-Miner. "It was a notable event in the history of Prescott's progress and advancement when the first streetcar to Fort Whipple made its initial official run." The article continued on to describe the trip from Arizona and Gurley Streets of nearly a mile in length as it crossed the Otis addition, passed two sides of the Citizen's Cemetery and then entered Fort Whipple. The line terminated behind the non-commissioned officers quarters (now known as buildings #24 - 27) and close to where the new base hospital was subsequently built (now building #28). A depressed path exists behind these buildings today and is considered to be the site of the original streetcar right-of-way. The Morning Courier of the same date, is quoted: "The construction of this line, without doubt, will be favorably considered by the war department as showing that our people are fully awake to the importance of this post and are giving it every convenience and other facility in their power." With the extension of the line into the growing eastern section of Prescott, the Journal-Miner continued with "it will do for this city proportionately what the electric system has done for Los Angeles." 

(Norm Delucci is a volunteer at Sharlot Hall Museum.) 

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(st176p)
Reuse only by permission.
Laying of the car tracks on Gurley Street for the town's first electric railway, c.1903-04. 

Sharlot Hall Museum Photograph Call Number:(st106p)
Reuse only by permission.
Along the Prescott and Mount Union Railway route c.1905, looking west from Cortez Street.