For many years, the old Clio line ran out its namesake street to Magnolia, which it followed over to Erato and returned. In 1901, it was extended up Magnolia to Seventh Street, and in 1904 was further extended up Magnolia to Napoleon, then over Napoleon to Freret, which it followed all the way to Broadway. It also ran in on Broadway to Maple, where it met the Coliseum “Snake” line, so nicknamed because it twisted all over uptown New Orleans (after 1913, the Magazine line). This photo is believed to show Clio car 55 on Broadway at its terminal at Maple Street. The car is facing the “wrong” way on Broadway; the crew has changed ends, and the car will shortly take the crossover in front of it to the right-hand track as it begins its next run downbound toward Canal Street and the French Quarter.
The second picture is a closeup detail from the first, giving us a better view of car 55 itself.
New Orleans had four streetcars numbered 55, one each owned by the New Orleans & Carrollton, the Orleans RR (ORR), St. Charles St. RR (SCSRR), and N. O. Traction Co. This one is most likely the car 55 of the ORR or the SCSRR, both of which were similar FB&D cars. The SCSRR cars 51-80 were acquired in October 1901, and the ORR cars 50-61 were purchased in 1902, both from St. Louis Car Co. The front clerestory windows on the SCSRR cars were divided into two panels, while those on the ORR cars were divided into three panels. So this car 55 is probably the ORR car. ORR lines were all on the downtown side of the city, while Clio was originally a SCSRR line. However, after the companies began to consolidate operations, cars were moved around all over the city. About 1918, the duplication of car numbers was eliminated, as older surviving cars were rebuilt and renumbered into the 300s.
As delivered, the cars had open platforms; in 1904, the vestibules were enclosed to the form seen here. The route sign can be seen both above the front center window, and in the glass of the front clerestory panel. The colors are reported by Hennick & Charlton to have been red and white.
The date of this photo is estimated as around 1916-17, based on the Herr fenders and the rebuilt sides of the car. — Michael Mizell-Nelson, “Clio streetcar, early 1900s,” New Orleans Historical, accessed October 8, 2013, http://neworleanshistorical.org/items/show/2. My thanks to Morris Hill for extensive research and contributions to this description.
