Meet a True Charlotte Native: Charlotte Trolley
Established in 1988, Charlotte Trolley, Inc. is a volunteer-driven non-profit dedicated to preserving and promoting vintage trolley service in the Charlotte region. Vintage trolleys animate the city center, connecting thriving urban neighborhoods with businesses and entertainment. More than just transportation vehicles, vintage trolleys are moving, changing classrooms for exploring science and the story of Charlotte's past and future.

Streetcars Build Charlotte's First Suburbs
After the Civil War, "New South" entrepreneurs began putting their faith in industrialization and urbanization. One such New South entrepreneur (from New York) was Edward Dilworth Latta. In 1890, E.D. Latta was a founder and the president of The Charlotte Consolidated Construction Company, also known as The Four Cs. The Four Cs bought 442 level and treeless acres south of Charlotte and laid out a beautiful grid of streets and boulevards, with the intention of constructing a suburban community - to be named Dilworth.

In 1890, the Four Cs purchased the existing horse-drawn cars from the City of Charlotte, and then later brought Thomas Edison to town to install new electric trolley lines. When electric streetcar service began to Dilworth on May 20, 1891, "The Morning Star" of Wilmington exulted: "The streets and yards fairly swarmed with people, each hurrahing and waving as the car passed along. Bouquets were sent to adorn the car, and everyone was wild with joy."

This reliable and affordable transportation option allowed Dilworth to flourish as Charlotte's first suburb. Other neighborhoods developed quickly, and service was extended to some of today's most inviting Charlotte neighborhoods, including Elizabeth, Myers Park, Biddleville, Plaza-Midwood and Wesley Heights.

Another forty-seven years later, in 1987, Car #85 was discovered in Huntersville, barely recognizable and in use as a three-room apartment! The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission purchased the streetcar for $1,000 - having no conclusive evidence yet that its purchase was a true Charlotte native.

Another forty-seven years later, in 1987, Car #85 was discovered in Huntersville, barely recognizable and in use as a three-room apartment! The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission purchased the streetcar for $1,000 - having no conclusive evidence yet that its purchase was a true Charlotte native.

That payback occurred in 4 years. More than 800,000 square feet of space has been developed - more than $400 million invested. According to the city's Budget Office, assessed property values have grown 89.6% since the district's inception:

• 2001   $232,900,085
• 2002   $256,323,383 (a 10.1% increase over previous year)
• 2003   $320,873,276 (a 25.2% increase over previous year)
• Est. 2004   $441,639,618 (a 37.6% increase over previous year)

And the return-on-investment continues as the trolley moves into Uptown.

Charlotte Trolley is partnering with the Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) to integrate the vintage trolley service with the rest of Charlotte-Mecklenburg's extensive transit network. Our volunteers on the trolley act as Charlotte's best ambassadors. We talk history, sure, because it's a great story: the crossroads town that has become an international financial powerhouse. But we also talk history in search of clues to our future: can our 20th-century successes help us tackle our 21st-century challenges? How can regional transit and economic development decisions create more thriving neighborhoods and business districts in the next hundred years?

Charlotte Trolley plans to be around to find out. Mecklenburg County and CATS have committed to purchase and restore the Historic Trolley Barn at Bland Street and South Boulevard, where Car #85 was built in 1927. When this facility is complete, it will once again serve as the home to Charlotte's vintage trolley service.

Citizen volunteers at Charlotte Trolley have dedicated more than 13,000 hours of service to our community. We've led tours for tittering school children; served customers in the gift shop; gotten our hands dirty restoring vintage trolleys; motored the trolley safely down the tracks; recounted the story of Charlotte's streetcars to all who visited…

…and we've brought history to the streets - every time the trolley clangs its way through an intersection or passes a pedestrian at a corner.

We are proud of our contribution, and you can contribute too! Are you passionate about history, fascinated by life on the rails, eager to teach others and learn from them too? Then you should get involved with Charlotte Trolley. Call 704-375-0850 today to get started!