Friends of the .04 Trolley
The 81, 82 and 83 route map
Click here to see a larger copy
Car
No..04 was built in 1911 by the Woeber Car Company, a prominent Denver carbuilder
for the Denver & Intermountain Railway (D&IM) and was originally their
CAr No. 11. Following the Denver City Tramway
Company’s acquisition of the Globeville and Barnum lines, four streetcars were
ordered from the Woeber Carriage Company and painted a brownish green color to
match the existing running streetcars. Car No.11 ran on the Barnum Line, which was
route 71. In 1922, it was decided to convert the Globeville and Barnum lines
from (4'81/2") standard gauge to (3'.6") narrow gauge to
provide a system-wide consistency.
The
standard gauge interurban cars were kept as integers and the four converted
narrow gauge cars became decimals. Car No. 11 became Car No. .04 which was returned
to service on April 29,1924. During its conversion, the middle entrance was
narrowed and another window bay added. Now both doors were equal in size. The
front door was the entrance, while the middle door was for exiting. Car No. 04
began running on Routes 81 and 82.
By
the early 1940s, metal panels were installed over the exterior wood paneling.
The bright chrome yellow color was chosen to improve the visibility of the
streetcars as the number of individual motorists on the road
had increased. By 1950,
all but six streetcars, including Car No. .04, had stopped running. July 3,1950
was Car No. .04’s last run. After the streetcar service was abandoned,
many were sold for $50-$100 after the Denver Tramway Company removed and salvaged
equipment and metal components from the cars. Streetcar No. .04 was purchase by
a person who relocated it to a site near Rollinsville where it was allegedly used
as a cabin.
The streetcar was then acquired by Jack Forney and relocated to the rear side of the
Forney Museum’s previous location at 1416 Platte Street in Denver. Wally and Susie Weart acquired the car from Jack Forney and donated it to the Denver Rail
Heritage Society prior to Forney Museum’s move from Platte Street to its
present location at 4303 Brighton Boulevard. Subsequently, History
Colorado and the City of Arvada each provided a grant to restore the car. It is
currently undergoing cosmetic restoration and upon completion will be displayed
near Olde Town Arvada.
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