Page 5 - Demo
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TROLLEY
era. Dry, dusty, unpaved roads were difficult to maintain, and the problem was compounded by the ice, snow, and rain that churned the streets into mud. Even durable cobblestone or Belgian block streets could not rival rails. The steel-rimmed wheels of horse-drawn vehicles encountered a lot more resis- tance (not to mention slippage and bumps) on this type of pavement when compared to smooth steel tracks. Streetcar systems were also feasible; it was relatively easy to lay ties and rails on existing street surfaces, and that is exactly what was done in downtown Lynchburg in 1880.
However, the street railway on Rivermont Avenue was al- ways powered by electricity. Most cities, Lynchburg included, quickly converted their horse-drawn systems to electricity after the first practical demonstration of the new powered
cars—which happened to occur in Richmond, Virginia, in 1887. The term trolley is thought to derive from troller. A troller was the earliest device used to convey electric power from overhead wires to the motors that powered the vehicles. The troller was soon replaced by the trolley pole. This pole was attached to the top of a railcar and was spring-loaded
in order to maintain constant contact between the overhead electric wire and a grooved wheel at the end of the trolley pole. Some trolley cars had a pole at each end so that one was lowered and the other raised to reverse direction. Other trol- leys had a single pole that rotated to accommodate reversing the direction of the car.
Trolley stop at Randolph-Macon Woman’s College, now Randolph College, ca. 1904.
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