Pacific Electric Railway: Then & Now May 1, 2012

Relive that wonderful era when you could take a street car from Santa Monica to Pasadena and beyond when authors Michael Patris and Steve Crise present a slide show of images from their new book, Pacific Electric Railway (Then & Now). Loaded with photos from Pacific Electric Railway Historical Society’s archives, Pacific Electric Railway shows the far-reaching “Red Car” transportation system started by San Marino’s Henry Huntington in 1901. The authors will also share photos from today’s Southern California landscape that the railway helped define, such as the green parkways of Huntington Drive and Sierra Madre Boulevard.

The Pacific Electric Railway originally provided reliable transportation across more than 1,000 miles of track. Postwar society's affair with the automobile led to the loss of an infrastructure that could have formed the basis for an enviable modern light-rail system, one that current society would be happy to utilize. Pacific Electric Railway Then & Now sold out its first printing in five weeks and is well on its way to a multiple printings.

Steve and Michael both serve on the board of the Pacific Electric Railway Historical Society as well as the Mount Lowe Preservation Society and were born and raised in Southern California. They have plans for future book projects based on Southern California railroads. Join them for a fascinating look at an amazing transportation system discarded for “progress.”