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Built in:1948 by St. Louis Car Company (ord#1662)
Out-of-service/Retired:1959 (1958)
Type of car:streetcar (PCC, postwar)
Current Owner:Illinois Railway Museum(Union, Illinois)
Car History by Frank Hicks
Chicago Transit Authority 4391
This car is the only surviving postwar Chicago PCC. After the end of World War II, Chicago Surface Lines ordered 600 PCC cars with the order split between Pullman and St. Louis Car Company. Longer and wider than standard PCC's, and with three sets of doors instead of two, they were nicknamed "Green Hornets" for their color. Midway through delivery of the 600 cars, in 1947, CSL was taken over by CTA and a policy of replacing streetcars with buses was put in place. Unfortunately for CTA, the massive PCC order could not be cancelled and 4391 was one of the cars delivered after the CTA takeover. It ran only ten years, until streetcar service ended in 1958, after which it was retained for a short time for the purpose of testing it in suburban service on the Chicago Aurora & Elgin interurban line (this planned test never took place). The car was acquired by ERHS and stored at that group's carbarn in Downers Grove until the outfit was evicted and went defunct in 1973; at that time the entire collection was given to IRM and 4391 was put into operation shortly afterwards. It is still in regular service.
Ownership History:Chicago Transit Authority #4391 1948-1959 / 1st preserved by Electric Railway Historical Society 1959-1973 / Illinois Railway Museum(Union, Illinois) 1973-present
Facts and Figures
| Status:operated occasionally | Gauge:4'8.5" |
| Construction:steel | Roof type:AR | Ended:SE |
| Length:50'0" | Width:9'0" | Weight:38800# |
| #Seats:57 | #Wheels/Conf.:8 (B-B) | Total HP:220 |
| Trucks:St Louis B3 | Brakes:Electric | Compressor:n/a |
| Motors:GE 1220E (4) | Voltage (if not 600DC): |
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