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1
Streetcar Advertising
in America
2
Streetcar advertising
had its beginning in
the 1850’s to 1870’s
Here is an 1890’s era electric
streetcar with advertising
cards in Memphis, TN
Photo courtesy of Memphis and Shelby County
Room, Memphis Public Library & Information Center
3
Streetcar advertising played a dominant role
in establishing numerous national and regional
consumer brands in the early 1900’s
There were literally 100’s of product brands available with
very little to differentiate one brand from another...
Grocery Item # of Brands Drugstore Item # of Brands
Wheat Flour 10,000 Perfume 2,500
Canned Corn 4,500 Face Powder 1,200
Tea 1,000 Shampoo 232
Canned Peaches 1,000 Deodorant 96
Mustard 500 Shaving Cream 75
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By the time of World War I in 1917, the street railway industry was the fifth largest
industry in the United States, employing well over 100,000 people nationwide
1905 Streetcar Map
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By 1918, the U.S. had over
50,000 cars displaying
advertising cards in nearly
3,000 cities and towns in
every state of the Union
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By 1927-1928, there were over
40 million streetcar riders a day in the U.S.
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Barron Gift Collier was born in
Memphis, Tennessee on March
23, 1873. He created the largest
streetcar advertising empire in the
world and was a millionaire by
age 26; at one time he had
business offices in 70 cities and
various business interests in more
than a thousand cities.
Barron G. Collier -
Father of Streetcar Advertising
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1903 Streetcar Chivalry Scene
Flatiron Building, New York City -
Barron Collier’s Executive Officeshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elcqaqmxj9U
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● Foods
● Beverages
● Candy/Gum
● Soap/Laundry
● Health/Beauty
● Clothing/Shoes
● Tobacco
● Information/
Communications
● Miscellaneous
● Advertising/
Promotion
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Courtesy of Conrad Misek - Quincy MA
61Courtesy of Coca-Cola Museum – Atlanta, GA
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Courtesy of Western Railway Museum Archives in Rio Vista Junction, California
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Courtesy of Western Railway Museum Archives in Rio Vista Junction, California
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Courtesy of Western Railway Museum Archives in Rio Vista Junction, California
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151Courtesy of Duane Farrar – Seattle, Washington
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● Products
● Entertainment
● Finance
● Services
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September 1928
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The demise of the streetcar industry led to
the demise of streetcar advertising
The streetcar industry peaked in
1920 with streetcar ridership
reaching 13.8 billion riders then
declined to 11.8 billion during the
pre-depression 1929 era.
In 1914, 100% of all U.S. cities
relied on streetcars; in 1937, 50%
of the cities had buses only. In
addition, automobile ownership
grew rapidly from 8.1 million
vehicles in 1920 to 23.1 million
vehicles in 1929.
By the 1940’s, the streetcar
railway industry had declined to
the point where they could be
found only in very large cities.
164
It is almost a century later now and
over 60% of the brands featured in
this presentation are still available
today!
The primary focus of streetcar advertising was always
about the consumer who rode the streetcars.
And to think…streetcar advertising played a major
role in establishing many of the fine products/services
and brands that we all enjoy today!
165
Learning More About Your American History Is A Good Thing!
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