June 2000
FOR USE AT WILL, PLEASE
Press Contact: Greg Burke, IMS-21, 207-985-1766, greg@ims21.net
Phil Morse, Museum Director Seashore Trolley Museum, 207-967-2712
Kennebunkport: The Seashore Trolley Museum announces the opening of a new display in the Museum's Orientation Room showcasing 100 years of York County Electric Railway operation. The new exhibit titled, “100 years of Electric Railway History in York County” showcases vintage photographs and memorabilia of the late 19th and early 20th century right here in York County.
The exhibit showcases the impact of the streetcar on Southern Maine and the Kennebunk area. This unique collection of photographs includes Cape Porpoise, Dock Square, Old Orchard Beach, Camp Ellis, downtown Biddeford and many more fascinating photos of the past.
"The Visitors Experience committee, headed by Peter Hammond and RT Lane, worked very hard this past winter developing this new display," commented Seashore Trolley Museum Director Phil Morse. "100 years ago people used electric railway transportation to access many new amenities. 1900 saw the opening of the Casino, on Bickford's Island in Cape Porpoise, at the end of the Sanford and Cape Porpoise Railway Line. Commencing on the July 4, 1900, passengers on the Atlantic Shoreline Railway could ride the 1.57 miles to Dock Square in Kennebunkport from the Town House Junction, located across the street from the present Kennebunkport Historical Society. Our new Orientation Exhibit is open daily and will be the first stop of our new daily guided tours we will be offering every day in July and August."
Founded in 1939, the Seashore Trolley Museum collects, restores, exhibits and demonstrates electric trolleys and other public transportation vehicles. The Museum was the first one of its kind in the world to preserve a public transportation vehicle and today houses the "National Collection of American Streetcars".
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The Seashore Trolley Museum has been operated by the New England Electric Railway Historical Society since 1939 as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit educational institution. For additional information on the Seashore Trolley Museum please call 207-967-2800 or visit them on the at www.trolleymuseum.org Seashore Trolley Museum, 195 Log Cabin Road, Kennebunkport, Maine 04046