Chicago & West Towns 141




Facts and Figures


Current Number141
Railway RepresentedChicago & West Towns
BuilderMcGuire-Cummings
Built In1924
Builder's order id
Currently in (State)Illinois
--(Locality)Union
Totally out of svc date1948
(Initial retirement date)
Car Typestreetcar
-subtypesafety car
-designation
Statusdisplayed operable
More infohttp://www.irm.org/player/cwt141
Gauge4'8.5"
Constructionsteel
Roof typeAR
EndedDE
Length47'0"
Width8'4"
Height11'6"
Weight46200
#Seats44
#Wheels/Conf.8
Total HP140
TrucksMcGuire 10B
BrakesStraight Air
CompressorCP-27
ControlGE PC-5 (CJ129A)
MotorsGE 203L (4)
Voltage (if not 600DC)

Car 141 in operation at IRM in 2015
Flickr
photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kurtsj00/27135409761/

Car 141 in operation at IRM in 2019
Illinois Railway Museum
photo: https://www.irm.org/gallery/CWT141/aaj

Car History by Frank Hicks


Chicago & West Towns 141
The only surviving streetcar from the "other" Chicago streetcar system, the West Towns, is car 141. This line ran from the Chicago city limits through some of the near western suburbs and owned a small but varied fleet of streetcars. Four of them, 138-141, were built for multiple-unit operation, though they could only train with each other. Around 1940 car 141 and the other three cars of its series were rebuilt for one-man operation, and at the same time their MU capability was removed; they ran as single cars until the West Towns converted to bus in 1948. At that time car 141's body was sold for use as a shed in suburban Downers Grove. Around 1958 ERHS, located just a few miles away in Downers Grove, acquired the carbody. When ERHS was dissolved in 1973, 141 went to IRM with the rest of its collection of streetcars. The project of completely restoring car 141 commenced in the late 1990's and is ongoing.


Ownership History


OwnerCar NumFromToPreservation?Loan?
Chicago & West Towns (Illinois, Oak Park)1411924 1948 NO NO
Electric Railway Historical Society (Illinois, Downers Grove)1411959 1973 YES NO
Illinois Railway Museum (Illinois, Union)1411973 present YES NO


Additional Media

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Car 141 in operation at IRM in 2023
VideoPress
video: https://videopress.com/v/HtaB0gsO