Two More M&H Cars Heading to a New Home

More good news about cars at the Middletown & Hummelstown finding new homes: the Rockhill Trolley Museum has announced on their website that they are planning to acquire two of the more historic cars in the M&H collection.

The first, shown above in 2017, is Lewistown & Reedsville 23, a center-entrance interurban car built by Brill in 1914. This is probably the single rarest car in the M&H traction collection. It was built for Jersey Central Traction in Perth Amboy, NJ, making it the last surviving New Jersey interurban car, but only ran there a brief time before it was sold to the L&R. There, it operated until retirement in 1933. For nearly 70 years it was a cottage near Lewistown but it was moved in 2002 and sat outside for a decade or so (it's visible on Street View!). When its owner sold it around 2016, it was Wendell at the M&H who snagged it. The car has been stored inside since then and the body appears to be solid. The L&R was the second-closest traction line to Orbisonia/Rockhill Furnace, so RTM is a natural home and the car is about as local for them as they're going to find.

The second car, shown here, is York Railways 162. This is a curve-side suburban car built by Brill in 1924, one of a handful of curve-siders that company built before they were compelled by Cincinnati Car Company to quit doing that. Car 162 and its identical sister, car 163, were retired in 1939 and both were turned into summer cottages. Car 163 has been beautifully restored by RTM, but nevertheless the museum plans on preserving car 162. Their plan, however, is to preserve it as a cottage rather than restore it as a streetcar.

Kudos to RTM and the M&H for working to ensure a future for both of these rather historic pieces.