Railmaps

Today's historic photo of the day: A pair of H type #trams no 376 leading, ready to run a peak hour trip to Glenelg 'Express to stop 14' from Victoria Square, Adelaide, January 19, 2004.

Today is the 10th anniversary of this historic photo of the day series. The first photo, posted 10 years ago today, was of a coupled pair of H types heading south in King William Street, so it's appropriate to end the series today with a pic of a similar coupled pair of H types taken moments later the same day.

Mar 25 at 1:05amWeb
Show threadRailmaps3d ago
These H type trams, with their design significantly influenced by US Interurban cars, were built in 1929 for the electrification of the Glenelg line. They ran on other lines too before their closure, but when the remainder of Adelaide's network closed in 1958 they remained in service on the Glenelg line, and were in fact the city's only tram type for many decades.
Show threadRailmaps3d ago
Most of the time, they ran as single cars. But at busy times the Hs ran coupled as two-car sets crewed by a driver and two conductors. Then, once or twice a day, there were these Express trams at the peak of the peak. These were Glenelg-bound sets that picked up at stops in the city, but thereafter ran express to Stop 14 which, if I recall correctly, may have been Marion Road (stop numbers have changed since then).
Show threadRailmaps3d ago
Adelaide's first new trams in many decades arrived a year or two after this photo, and the H types last ran in regular service in 2006. In 2007, the city tram line was extended north along King William Street and this terminus in the centre of Victoria Square was by-passed. The network has since been expanded a couple of times and today there are two separate routes. But sadly, today there are no 'Express' trams.
Show threadRailmaps3d ago
And that brings to an end this series of historic photos of the day. When I started ten years ago I just wanted to share a few of the train and tram pic, and it became a ritual. Before I knew it, here we are a decade later! All photos are from my personal collection, most taken by me, although some were taken by my mother or my grandfather, and one, from some time in WW1, even probably by my great grandfather. Even after all this time, I still have quite a few images that I have not yet posted.
Show threadRailmaps3d ago
So, thank you for coming along on this ride. All the posts can be found on the various social media sites - starting with Twitter and Facebook from March 25 2016, Mastodon/Fediverse from April 26, 2022, Threads from July 7 2023 and Bluesky from August 14 2023. All photos from January 1, 2022 onwards have also been published on my website at https://railmaps.com.au/photos.htm, and I will be adding a searchable index to this archive in coming weeks, and I will share a link here when that's done.
Historic Photo of the Day

Historic Photo of the Day: 2026-03-25

Show threadRailmaps3d ago

Finally, I'm not going away.

I will still post photos here, both historic and current day - but rather than on a regular daily timetable, they will be as and when I feel like doing it. I have some videos from the 1990s which I am going to digitise, and I will be doing a few more things. So, thanks again for all your interest and comments over the years. Here's to the future!

Chris,
Australian Rail Maps.

Show threadeggs3d ago
@railmaps Thanks, Chris. Loved the series and the dedication you obviously have to maintain such an accurate database.
Show threadMatt3d ago
@railmaps Thanks for sharing so many great photos (and your memories) over the last 10 years.