Brown’s Diner Part II

Car #2 Revealed

Last week 90% of historic Brown’s Diner Street Car #2 was demolished to make way for a larger diner kitchen. I observed the entire project and salvaged what I could, but very little of the original car was left, probably due to decades of updates, and at least two fires. They were fortunate that Ladder 16 was across the street for most, if not all of their 96 year old history.

The 4″x4″‘s underneath the floor were severely charred (I have several in my possession). Leaking grease from the grill is probably the accelerant for the fire below. I believe these are part of the original car, but what I found attached to them underneath, is another mystery.

Both cars have chassis that are clearly not from any known street cars, even mule drawn. A local expert surmises that the massive original Street Car iron wheels were salvaged and these were used to move the cars to their final resting place at Brown’s in 1927. The Car #1 wheels closely resemble those I found at the Ellington Agricultural Museum on farm equipment. The Car #2 wheels and chassis look very similar to old Circus Wagons. I would date both car chassis at around 150 years old.

Here is a 3D model of the documented components of Car #2. Note the pivot rings on the front end of the car. The video below illustrates their function.

This 3D image shows the remains of Car #2, about 7 feet of the original car length. The wheels and chassis are under the framing.

Nashville Inter Urban Railway

note: the term Trolley Car was never used for these vehicles

More on Nashville Street Car history…

Brown’s Diner Part I

#streetcars