Omaha Cable Tramway Company
Encyclopedia
The Cable Tramway Company of Omaha, Nebraska
started in 1884 and ended in 1895. was the only cable car
line ever built in Omaha, and had only four lines of tracks in operation.
.
Frederick Drexel, who came to Omaha in 1856, helped incorporate the Cable Tramway Company in 1887. Former Omaha mayor Ezra Millard
was the first treasurer of the company when he died in 1886, and Samuel R. Johnson was the president.
The company had a bad image because of frequent disruptions in service caused by cable breakages. The cables were made of wire and hemp rope. In 1887 the company was sued by the Omaha Horse Railway
for infringing on its territory after the Cable Tramway Company built tracks on the same street the railway operated on. The case was dismissed by a district court judge.
After electrically powered trams were introduced in Omaha, in April 1889 the Cable Tramway Company consolidated with the Omaha Horse Railway under the name Omaha Street Railway Company, which was then disbanded in 1896.
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
started in 1884 and ended in 1895. was the only cable car
Cable car (railway)
A cable car or cable railway is a mass transit system using rail cars that are hauled by a continuously moving cable running at a constant speed. Individual cars stop and start by releasing and gripping this cable as required...
line ever built in Omaha, and had only four lines of tracks in operation.
History
The Omaha Cable Tramway Company was originally formed in 1884, and began operating in 1887. Its power house was at 20th and Harney Streets in Downtown OmahaDowntown Omaha
Downtown Omaha is the central business, government and social core of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area, and is located in Omaha, Nebraska. The boundaries are 20th Street on the west to the Missouri River on the east and the centerline of Leavenworth Street on the south to the centerline...
.
Frederick Drexel, who came to Omaha in 1856, helped incorporate the Cable Tramway Company in 1887. Former Omaha mayor Ezra Millard
Ezra Millard
Ezra Millard was a U.S. politician who was mayor of Omaha, Nebraska, from 1869 to 1871. He was also brother to Joseph Hopkins Millard, another mayor of Omaha and name sake of Millard, Nebraska....
was the first treasurer of the company when he died in 1886, and Samuel R. Johnson was the president.
The company had a bad image because of frequent disruptions in service caused by cable breakages. The cables were made of wire and hemp rope. In 1887 the company was sued by the Omaha Horse Railway
Omaha Horse Railway
The Omaha Horse Railway was a private transportation company in early Omaha, Nebraska. The company was founded in 1867 by Omaha pioneers Ezra Millard, Andrew J. Hanscom and Augustus Kountze to provide horsecar service in the city...
for infringing on its territory after the Cable Tramway Company built tracks on the same street the railway operated on. The case was dismissed by a district court judge.
After electrically powered trams were introduced in Omaha, in April 1889 the Cable Tramway Company consolidated with the Omaha Horse Railway under the name Omaha Street Railway Company, which was then disbanded in 1896.
See also
- History of Omaha
- Omaha and Council Bluffs Railway and Bridge CompanyOmaha and Council Bluffs Railway and Bridge CompanyThe Omaha and Council Bluffs Railway and Bridge Company, known as O&CB, was incorporated in 1886 in order to connect Omaha, Nebraska with Council Bluffs, Iowa over the Missouri River...
- Omaha StreetcarOmaha StreetcarOmaha Streetcar is a nonprofit organization in Omaha, Nebraska composed of individuals, organizations, institutions, businesses, and public agencies...
- Transportation in OmahaTransportation in OmahaTransportation in Omaha, Nebraska includes most major modes, such as pedestrian, bicycle, automobile, bus, train and airplane. While early transportation consisted of ferries, stagecoaches, steamboats, street railroads, and railroads, the city's transportation systems have evolved to include the...