Picture 14A-2.
Car no. 11 was the second electric streetcar in Champaign-Urbana.
Cars 10 and 11 were 16 foot closed cars built by Brownell in 1890.
No. 11 went into service on March 13, 1891, when the private right-of-way
in Urbana was electrified. In the 1890s, it was sometimes used as
a line car by fitting a platform over the roof. Note the unusual
position of the brake handle: on the platform, rather than over the dash.
This was probably made necessary when the add-on vestibule windows, seen
here, were installed. The car was overhauled in 1897, receiving a
more powerful motor, a new paint scheme, and vestibules. Compare
the two pictures of sister car no. 10: Picture 14A-1
is older, and Picture 14A-3 is newer. Car
11 was probably retired after a fogbound collision with ITS interurban
car no. 300 on West John Street the evening of March 5, 1908. The
conductor is wearing his bell punch, the fare counting device hanging from
his neck. Look at those long dresses!
— Champaign County Historical Society (#235 lower)
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