Where Did Trolleys Run In the Town of Pelham?

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Trolley tracks once criss-crossed the Town of Pelham.  Throughout each day and a portion of each night, electric trolleys rattled along tracks laid in the streets of all three villages that comprised the Pelhams.  Where were all the tracks?  Where did the trolleys run?

Detail from a Photograph in the Collections of the Westchester

County Historical Society Showing "Four Corners," the Intersection

of Pelhamdale Avenue and Boston Post Road Before 1937.  The

"H Line" Trolley is Returning from Shore Road Toward the Intersection.

At this Intersection, Trolley Tracks Along Pelhamdale Avenue Split

With Some Tracks Turning Onto Boston Post Road Toward New

Rochelle and Others Continuing Along Pelhamdale Avenue.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

At the very height of trolley travel in our little Town, in the late 1920s, several different trolley lines ran through Pelham.  In the upper reaches of the Village of North Pelham, a trolley line began in North Pelham on upper Pelhamdale Avenue near the Chester Heights Station of the New York, Westchester & Boston Railroad once located in the Village of Bronxville in the Town of Eastchester.  That trolley line proceeded a few blocks past part of Chester Park to Mayflower Avenue.  The tracks split there with one set of tracks turning east onto Mayflower Avenue into the City of New Rochelle.  The other set continued south along upper Pelhamdale Avenue past the remainder of Chester Park and continued onto Fifth Avenue.  The line continued south on Fifth Avenue and passed the intersection of Fourth Street (today's Lincoln Avenue).  

Detail of Map Published in 1924 Showing Upper Part of Village

of North Pelham.  Dashed Lines Show Paths of Trolley Lines.

Note the Line that Starts Near Chester Heights Station and

Proceeds South Along Upper Pelhamdale Avenue with One Set

of Tracks Turning East on Mayflower Avenue Into New Rochelle.

Source:  Fairchild, John F., "STREET MAP OF THE CITY OF

MOUNT VERNON AND THE TOWN OF PELHAM WESTCHESTER

CO., N.Y." (1924) (From the Digital Collections of the Westchester

County Archive).  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

Another line entered North Pelham from the City Mount Vernon on Fourth Street (today's Lincoln Avenue) and proceeded through the village on that roadway and on into the City of New Rochelle.   The map detail immediately below shows this line that crossed the Village of North Pelham via today's Lincoln Avenue.

Detail of Map Published in 1924 With Dashed Lines Showing

Trolley Lines.  Note the Trolley Line that Crosses North Pelham

from Mount Vernon to New Rochelle on Fourth Street (Lincoln Ave.)

Source:  Fairchild, John F., "STREET MAP OF THE CITY OF

MOUNT VERNON AND THE TOWN OF PELHAM WESTCHESTER

CO., N.Y." (1924) (From the Digital Collections of the Westchester

County Archive).  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The first line on Fifth Avenue crossed Fourth Street (today's Lincoln Avenue) and passed beneath the overpass and Fifth Avenue Station of the New York, Westchester, and Boston Railroad that once passed through North Pelham.  That trolley continued south and passed beneath the overpass and tracks of the New Haven line where Fifth Avenue becomes Wolfs Lane.  As it passed beneath the railroad tracks, the trolley line exited the Village of North Pelham and entered the Village of Pelham (today's Pelham Heights) where the roadway becomes Wolfs Lane.  The map detail immediately below shows how the trolley line along Fifth Avenue proceeded south beneath the New Haven Line overpass and tracks heading toward today's Colonial Avenue.

Detail of Map Published in 1924 With Dashed Lines Showing

Trolley Lines.  Note the Trolley Line that Proceeds Along

Fifth Avenue Beneath the Overpass and Tracks of the New Haven Line

Onto Wolfs Lane in the Village of Pelham.  Source:

Fairchild, John F., "STREET MAP OF THE CITY OF

MOUNT VERNON AND THE TOWN OF PELHAM WESTCHESTER

CO., N.Y." (1924) (From the Digital Collections of the Westchester

County Archive).  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

As the trolley line proceeded south in the Village of Pelham along Wolfs Lane and passed Boulevard, a set of trolley tracks from Mount Vernon's East 3rd Street entered the Village of Pelham via Boulevard and joined the trolley tracks on Wolfs Lane headed toward today's Colonial Avenue.  The map detail immediately below shows the trolley line as it passed Boulevard where another set of tracks joined it from East 3rd Street in Mount Vernon.

Detail of Map Published in 1924 With Dashed Lines Showing

Trolley Lines.  Note the Trolley Line that Proceeds Along

Wolfs Lane Past Boulevard Where a Set of Tracks Joined

from East 3rd Street in Mount Vernon.  Source:  Fairchild,

John F., "STREET MAP OF THE CITY OF

MOUNT VERNON AND THE TOWN OF PELHAM WESTCHESTER

CO., N.Y." (1924) (From the Digital Collections of the Westchester

County Archive).  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

When the trolley tracks reached Colonial Avenue, they turned eastward onto Colonial Avenue.  In addition, another set of trolley tracks from today's East Sandford Boulevard in the City of Mount Vernon entered Pelham on Colonial Avenue and joined the tracks that proceeded only a couple of blocks on Colonial Avenue where the tracks turned southeastward on Pelhamdale Avenue where they entered the Village of Pelham Manor.  The tracks then proceeded along Pelhamdale Avenue toward Boston Post Road.  The map detail immediately below shows the path of the tracks in this region.

Detail of Map Published in 1924 With Dashed Lines Showing

Trolley Lines.  Note the Trolley Line that Proceeds Along

Wolfs Lane Where it Turns Onto Colonial Avenue and Is

Joined by Another Set of Tracks Entering from Mount Vernon.

The Tracks Continue Two Blocks then Turn Southeast on Pelhamdale.

Source:  Fairchild, John F., "STREET MAP OF THE CITY OF

MOUNT VERNON AND THE TOWN OF PELHAM WESTCHESTER

CO., N.Y." (1924) (From the Digital Collections of the Westchester

County Archive).  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The trolley line continued along Pelhamdale Avenue until it reached Boston Post Road.  There the tracks split.  One set of tracks turned east onto Boston Post Road and continued into the City of New Rochelle along Boston Post Road.  The second set of tracks simply continued southeast along Pelhamdale Avenue, passing beneath the Branch Line overpass and tracks to the end of Pelhamdale Avenue at Shore Road where the trolley cars had to be flipped for a return trip.  The last of the map details that appears immediately below shows this region of the trolley lines that crossed the Village of Pelham Manor.

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