Willimantic's Effort to get a Trolley - Part 3 by Pete Zizka 4-1-2023

With Starr and the New York investors out of the picture, a group from Boston stepped in and sent their attorney to Willimantic to “look over the city and surroundings with a view to buying the street railroad franchise and constructing the railway”. Negotiations dragged on until August when the group wishing to purchase the franchise “accepted the terms of the owners”. The group’s representative, Mister Pettis, had carefully checked out the line’s proposed route along with an engineer and decided that it was acceptable and, on August 13, 1899, was given ten days in which to exercise the option to buy. General Boss and the other franchise holders, “in light of previous experience, do not feel like being too sure until they have the sale closed”. This time, the sale went through and the group led by Pettis was well aware that unless rails were laid within a year, they would lose the right to build the street railway in Willimantic. Pettis then leased an office in the Hayden Block and hired two engineers to make preliminary plans. In a September public hearing before the Common Council’s Street Committee, the company presented its plans and there was no opposition. The Chronicle reported, “This time the deal may amount to something”. By the end of September, the possibility of having an operating trolley within a year was so great that now, people from Mansfield were getting ideas. Over 100 citizens met with Mr. Pettis at the Elmwood Hall in Mansfield Center to discuss the possibility of having the Willimantic based trolley reach Storrs either through Mansfield or South Coventry. It was felt by all present that the patronage would be extensive, both in passengers and freight and that it would put the Agricultural College, “where it should be, in closer relation to the outside world”. Two meetings between the Board of Aldermen and the Railway Company went smoothly including one in which the Aldermen proposed a tax of 1 percent on the Company. The company made a counter-proposal of one quarter percent on gross receipts and rising to one percent by 1908. The aldermen adopted the Company’s plan. But this was Willimantic so things didn’t go smoothly. Within two weeks, the Aldermen switched gears and demanded a one percent tax after five years and so the Railway Company lawyer said that the Company “would proceed no further in building the road”. Things remained on hold. But at the end of October, a marathon meeting occurred between the Railway Company principals and Willimantic officials. Each sided forwarded its requirements and, one by one, they were discussed. Each issue was resolved except for the tax. There was a tie in the vote for the tax resolution and so Mayor Tanner broke the tie by voting for the tax. Within two weeks, however, that resolution was reversed and the Company’s offer was accepted. By the end of November, the Company had decided upon the route and now applied formally to the City for permission to lay its tracks on several streets in addition to those streets which had already been granted permission. Things now began to proceed smoothly. Mr. Pettis had awarded a construction contract and that work would be started as soon as weather would permit. In January, 1900 Pettis also promised that people “may take a trolley ride between Willimantic and South Windham” as early as May. Within days of the announcement, however, it was learned that there was an internal conflict between the Company and the group that was supposed to provide the financing. Fortunately, alternate financing was quickly secured, the Company was reorganized and on February 6, 1900, announced that construction would begin as soon as “frost was out of the ground”. The first link to be built and put into operation would be the line from Willimantic (beginning near Jillson Hill) to Baltic where the Norwich Street Railway Company would connect with it by building a short stretch of line from Taftville to Baltic. The Company promised that the road would be “of the best construction and equipment and that the financial part is entirely provided for”. The completed road from Willimantic to Norwich would be seventeen miles long “and pass through some very charming scenery”.  Today’s photo shows a group in Coventry at the trolley’s opening day celebration.     click on photo for larger version

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