The East St. Louis and Suburban Railway was an interurban railroad that operated in Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

.

Route

It served Madison County

Madison County, Illinois

Madison County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. Madison County is part of the Metro-East region of the St. Louis Metro Area. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 269,282, which is an increase of 4.0% from 258,941 in 2000. The county seat is Edwardsville, home to...

, St. Clair County

St. Clair County, Illinois

St. Clair County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. In 1970, the U.S. Census Bureau placed the mean center of U.S. population in St. Clair County. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 270,056, which is an increase of 5.5% from 256,082 in 2000. Its county seat is...

, and Monroe County

Monroe County, Illinois

Monroe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 32,957, which is an increase of 19.3% from 27,619 in 2000. Its county seat is Waterloo...

 as part of the great "East Side Electric Railway System." It stretched from the Eads Bridge

Eads Bridge

The Eads Bridge is a combined road and railway bridge over the Mississippi River at St. Louis, connecting St. Louis and East St. Louis, Illinois....

, which crossed the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 from East St. Louis, Illinois

East St. Louis, Illinois

East St. Louis is a city located in St. Clair County, Illinois, USA, directly across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri in the Metro-East region of Southern Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 27,006, less than one-third of its peak of 82,366 in 1950...

 to St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

, east to Lebanon

Lebanon, Illinois

Lebanon is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,523 at the 2000 census. Like many other places in "Little Egypt" or Southern Illinois, Lebanon was named after the Middle Eastern country of the same name. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St...

, and from Alton

Alton, Illinois

Alton is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 27,865 at the 2010 census. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in Southern Illinois...

, to Waterloo

Waterloo, Illinois

Waterloo is a city in Monroe County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,614 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Monroe County.-Geography:Waterloo is located at ....

. This railroad moved commuters and express freight among various towns in the East St. Louis area including Belleville

Belleville, Illinois

Belleville is a city in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city has a population of 44,478. It is the eighth-most populated city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area and the most populated city south of Springfield in the state of Illinois. It is the county...

, Collinsville

Collinsville, Illinois

Collinsville is a city located mainly in Madison County, and partially in St. Clair County, both in Illinois. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 26,016. Collinsville is approximately 12 miles from St. Louis, Missouri and is considered part of that city's Metro-East area...

, Waterloo, Columbia

Columbia, Illinois

Columbia is a city in Monroe and St. Clair County in the U.S. state of Illinois, about south of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 7,922 at the 2000 census.-History:...

, Granite City

Granite City, Illinois

Granite City is a city in Madison County, Illinois, United States, part of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area. At the 2010 census, the population was 29,849, making it the third largest city in the Metro-East and Southern Illinois, behind Alton and Belleville...

, National City

National City, Illinois

National City, Illinois is a suburb of East St. Louis, Illinois. Incorporated in 1907, it was a company town for the St. Louis National Stockyards Company.National City was annexed by nearby Fairmont City, Illinois not East St...

, French Village, and Lebanon.

History

The system expanded during the industrial growth of St. Louis in the late 19th century, spilling across the Mississippi River to the cheaper land on the Illinois side. From 1870-1910, East St. Louis and the surrounding area attracted industrial development to the transportation hub. During this period, the population of East St. Louis population nearly doubled each decade. Amidst this growth, the East St. Louis and Suburban grew by acquiring shorter interurban lines. The Illinois Traction System reached St. Louis via trackage rights on the East St. Louis and Suburban over the Eads Bridge until the completion of the McKinley Bridge

McKinley Bridge

The McKinley Bridge is a steel truss bridge across the Mississippi River. It connects northern portions of the city of St. Louis, Missouri with Venice, Illinois. It opened in 1910 and was taken out of service on October 30, 2001. The bridge was reopened for pedestrian and bicyclists on November 17,...

. The Illinois Terminal Railroad

Illinois Terminal Railroad

The Illinois Terminal Railroad, known as the Illinois Traction System until 1937, was a heavy duty interurban electric railroad with extensive passenger and freight business in central and southern Illinois from 1896 to 1982...

 later purchased the Alton Line. The East St. Louis and Suburban shared a car barn on Ridge Ave. in East St. Louis with the St. Louis and Belleville Electric Railway, which was also part of the Great East Side Electric Railway System. The system was abandoned sectionally during the 1930s.