Ralph Cantos Collection

By Ralph Cantos This tranquil scene at Pacific Electric’s Burbank Yard belies the sad fact that the end has come, prematurely I might add, to PE’s Glendale-Burbank modern light rail [...]

By Ralph Cantos Pacific Electric’s 100-class cars built in 1930 were often referred to as “double-truck Birneys.” The late Ira L. Swett described them as “several cuts [...]

By Ralph Cantos On April 14, 1912, just after the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg, Captain Smith was informed by the Titanic’s builder Thomas Andrews that the Titanic was doomed and was going [...]

By Ralph Cantos This interesting photograph taken in January of 1923 shows Pacific Electric no. 175 (AKA “Submarine”) awaiting its departure time in front of the Beverly Hills Hotel. [...]

By Ralph Cantos By the mid-1940s, more than 600 single end PCCs had been delivered and were in service across the USA. Most of the nearly identical air-electric PCCs had been built by the St. [...]

By Ralph Cantos This publicity photograph taken on the north bound lanes of the Cahuenga Pass was staged for all to behold. Pacific Electric proclaimed that a new era in transportation had [...]

By Ralph Cantos The postcard images depicted here show the Cahuenga Pass over a 45-year span. The image above shows the Pacific Electric’s car tracks in the center of the then-called [...]

By Ralph Cantos This tattered old photograph taken in January 1912 depicts the civic and cooperate pride in the grand breaking ceremonies associated with the extension of “modern light [...]

By Ralph Cantos Near-new Los Angeles Railway PCC no. 3011 swings off of Larchmont Boulevard onto West 3rd Street in this 1939 photo. LARY was very proud of their new PCCs. LARY got the 4th order [...]

By Ralph Cantos Many post-World War II postcards showing vibrant downtown business districts across America had a tendency to include streetcars. What would any great city be without streetcars? [...]