N (Los Angeles Railway)

N was a streetcar line in Los Angeles, California. It was operated by the Los Angeles Railway from 1920 to 1950. The line ran from Spring and 2nd Streets to 8th Street and Western Avenue, by way of Spring Street, 9th Street, Vermont Avenue, and 8th Street.

N
Main, Spring (center of frame), and 9th (bottom of frame), where the N takes a turn. c. 1917
Overview
LocaleLos Angeles
Termini
Stations21
Service
TypeStreetcar
SystemLos Angeles Railway
History
Opened1905
ClosedSeptember 10, 1950 (1950-09-10)
Technical
Track gauge3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
ElectrificationOverhead line600 V DC
Route map

1932–1939
 8 
Spring and Sunset
Spring and California
Spring and Temple
Spring and 1st
Spring and 2nd
 9 
Spring and 3rd
Spring and 4th
Spring and 5th
Spring and 6th
Spring and 7th
 J   R   S 
Spring and 8th
Main and 9th
 F 
9th and Broadway
 5   9   P   W 
9th and Hill
Venice Short Line
9th and Olive
9th and Grand
 J 
9th and Hope
9th and Flower
9th and Figueroa
9th and Blaine
9th and Valencia
9th and Union
9th and Burlington
9th and Alvarado
9th and Park View
9th and Hoover
9th and Westmoreland
9th and Vermont
 V 
8th and Vermont
 V 
8th and Catalina
8th and Mariposa
8th and Irolo
8th and Harvard
8th and Serrano
8th and Western

History

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The Ninth Street Line was built by the Los Angeles Railway in 1895 and ran via Spring Street, 9th Street, and Park View to a junction with the Lincoln Heights Line at 10th and Hoover Streets. From there both routes ran along West 10th Street to a terminus at Vermont Avenue. Circa 1911, the Park View section was eliminated and the route was extended along 9th Street, Vermont, and 8th Street to a loop at Western Avenue.[1]

In 1920, the line was rerouted, operating from 8th and Harvard via 8th; Vermont; 9th; Spring; 2nd; Traction Way; 3rd; and Santa Fe to 2nd, terminating at the Los Angeles Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway station.[2] It was given the letter designation N in 1921.[3][4]

Tracks were laid on a newly-rebuilt Spring Street in June 1932, extending the line to the Sunset Boulevard Plaza.[5][6][7] Cars were temporarily routed to Union Station as the line's northern terminal between May 1939 and June 1946.[8][9] In 1950 the route was removed, though the 8th Street section of the line continued to run as part of the re-routed S line.[1]

Sources

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  1. ^ a b "'N'". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved September 19, 2020.
  2. ^   One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain: Terrass, John (1922). Study and Plan of Relief of the Street Traffic Congestion in the City of Los Angeles, California (PDF) (Thesis). University of California. Retrieved January 29, 2021.
  3. ^ "May 1: This Date in Los Angeles Transportation History". Metro Dorothy Peyton Gray Transportation Library and Archive. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Retrieved February 16, 2022. 1921: Large letter signs indicating the routes of different lines are placed on top of Los Angeles Railway streetcars.
  4. ^ "Cars To Have Letter Signs" (PDF). Two Bells. Vol. 1, no. 48. Los Angeles Railway. May 2, 1921. p. 1. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
  5. ^ "Spring Street Extension to be Opened This Week". Los Angeles Times. June 19, 1932. p. 17. Retrieved February 17, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  6. ^ "Transit Routes to Change". Los Angeles Times. June 3, 1932. p. 17. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  7. ^ "New Street Car Routes in Effect". Los Angeles Times. June 13, 1932. p. 13. Retrieved July 29, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  8. ^ "'N' cars will run to depot". The Los Angeles Times. May 3, 1939. p. 10. Retrieved December 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
  9. ^ "Busses Take Over A Line; Other Changes". The Los Angeles Times. July 1, 1946. p. 13. Retrieved December 21, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.  
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