Connecting the Tri-State
Connecting the Tri-State
Today, we take for granted the convenience of traveling on modern roads that connect us to communities throughout the Tri-State. Did you know that in the pre and early automobile eras that there was another form of transportation that interlocked our area? This was the interurban rail system that made it possible to travel to many parts of southwestern Indiana and into western Kentucky. With Evansville as the hub, a person could travel as for north as Patoka, as far west as Mt. Vernon, as far east as Grandview, and as far south as Henderson, Kentucky. (Perhaps not surprisingly, the rest of Indiana was connected by a vast interurban system that did connect to Southwestern Indiana.) What follows is an overview of the interurban lines that served the area.
Interior and exterior of ES&N Depot at 315 SE Fifth Street. Gift of C & R Co.; 1973.011.0043&.0045
The earliest interurban in the Tri-State was the Evansville, Suburban & Newburgh Railway (ES&N). Incorporated in 1888, it originally connected Evansville to Newburgh and later to Boonville via Chandler. Initially running steam powered trains, it later converted to electric cars that made the run from Evansville to Newburgh in 26 minutes. In 1920 alone, the ES&N carried over 665,000 passengers and made 18 stops on its Newburgh and Boonville routes. With the continued rise of the automobile, ridership on the ES&N declined and it discontinued rail service in 1930.
The Evansville & Ohio Valley Railway (E&OV), and its predecessor’s lines, connected much of the Tri-State from its hub station located at Second and Locust Streets. Electric cars provided service to Mt. Vernon via St. Philip, Ford, and Caborn to the west; to Henderson to the south; and to Grandview via Newburgh, Hatfield, Richland, and Rockport to the east. At Rockport, a ferry connected to Owensboro, Kentucky. The roots of the E&OV originated with the Evansville & Eastern Railway Company founded in 1904 and the Evansville, Henderson and Owensboro Railway formed in 1911. In the 1920s, the E&OV abandoned some of its lines with its last run occurring in October of 1938 to Newburgh.
Interurban Car in Newburgh, Indiana; Gift of Mr. Henry A. Meyer; 1963.232.2077
In the early 20th century, the Evansville and Princeton Traction Company commenced operation between the two communities in the company’s name. The line made 12 stops on the route from Evansville and Princeton and covered the 28.06 miles in one hour and 15 minutes. In 1904, 500,000 people traveled this railway. The line was subsequently extended north to Patoka and following several takeovers and mergers it became part of Southern Indiana Gas and Electric Company which also ran the city’s streetcar system. This line north from Evansville operated until 1933.
These lines were a great advancement during the age of the horse and buggy and provided a reliable mode of transportation throughout the year. The next time you are traveling about southwestern Indiana, envision a region connected via interurban lines as people made their way throughout the Tri-State for business and pleasure as part of their daily lives.
Chief Curator & Curator of History
Tom Lonnberg