An original 5x2.5" vintage photo (NOT a modern reprint) from the estate of a train enthusiast who collected and filmed filmed trains and streetcars of all sorts. Many of the photos from his collection are likely one of a kind.
Photo Overview
This is a builder\'s photograph of streetcar No. 586, manufactured by The J. G. Brill Company of Philadelphia, PA, for the Washington Railway and Electric Company. The car is shown in a classic builder\'s broadside pose - a formal side profile taken at the factory to document the finished product before delivery. Car 586 is a classic open-platform, double-truck streetcar featuring elegant arched clerestory windows, open rear vestibule with safety gates, and a dark lower body with lighter upper paneling. The Brill company placard visible in the image reads: \'The J. G. Brill Company - Car & Truck Builders - Philadelphia, U.S.A. - - Photo 2881.\'
This is a small-format (5x2.5 inch) original builder\'s photo, a style produced specifically by Brill to document each order. From the collector\'s estate of a dedicated rail enthusiast who traveled the world photographing trains.
Historical Notes
The J. G. Brill Company was one of America\'s premier streetcar manufacturers, founded in Philadelphia in 1868. Brill supplied cars to transit systems across the United States and the world. for the Washington Railway and Electric Company (WR&EC) was part of a fleet expansion for Washington, D.C.\'s extensive streetcar network, which at its peak was one of the largest in the nation.
The Washington Railway and Electric Company operated D.C. streetcar lines until it was absorbed into Capital Transit in 1933, which itself was later reorganized into D.C. Transit. The entire Washington streetcar system was controversially abandoned in 1962. The city later revived streetcar service in a limited form on H Street NE in 2016. The J. G. Brill Company itself ceased streetcar production in the 1940s as bus and automobile traffic eroded demand for electric street railways nationwide.
Print analysis
This appears to be a Type 1 original builder\'s photograph, produced by or for the J. G. Brill Company at or very close to the time of delivery, likely in the 1910s based on the car\'s design characteristics, the order number sequence, and the photographic paper style. The image is a silver gelatin print on a thin, panoramic-format paper consistent with Brill factory documentation photos of the era. The red rubber stamp identification on the back is consistent with transit company filing practices of the period.
Condition
In fair to good vintage condition. Please see photos for precise condition.
Related Items:
WR&EC Streetcar 586 J.G. Brill Co Philadelphia Builder 1910s - Original Photo
$35.00
