Kenneth Springirth 128 pages softcover
Interconnecting trolley card systems clanging through largely rural area never far from Lake Erie linked Erie's busy Perry Square with Cleveland's vibrant Public Square. The Conneaut and Erie Traction company served a thinly populated region from Erie, Pennsylvania to Conneaut, Ohio. At Conneaut, transfer could be made to the Pennsylvania and Ohio Railway to Ashtabula where a connection could be made to the Cleveland Painesville and Eastern Railroad. From Cleveland's Public Square,the Cleveland Railway Company blanketed the city with Trolley Car lines. The freedom of the family car resulted in a severe ridership decline for the interurban lines which by 1926 were abandoned between Erie and Cleveland. With amazing foresight, the Van Sweringen brothers developed a high speed trolley system to attract residents to their upscale development at Shaker Heights. Recognizing the importance of the rail system making almost every home in Shaker Heights within easy walking distance of rail service, the city of Shaker Heights purchased the rail system which even in the automobile age continues to be a life line for the community. Erie to Cleveland by Trolley features many vintage photographs documenting the history of the trolley lines that linked Erie with Cleveland, the trolley cars that served Cleveland until 1954 and the Shaker Heights Rapid Transit that has survived and was rebuilt into a modern light rail system now operated by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority.
