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DIY People Frank Graham at the controls of one of his model trolleys.
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Once a year, a lucky few who worked on streetcars, and those who only wished they had, gather to honor and celebrate a much-loved form of transportation -- the trolley. The men and women of the Florida Electric Railways Club know their trolleys. They can easily differentiate between a "PCC: streetcar and a "Interurban", and are more than willing to take you through the attributes of each. Their admiration for the trolley is no less enthusiastic than an automobile buff's ardor for a gleaming Packard or Hudson. Among the club's rank and file are fans old enough to remember streetcars rumbling up and down the avenues, and a younger generation who only know trolleys from photos and museums. "I've always wanted to run a trolley since I was a kid," exclaims Frank Graham, who organizes the club's annual public show and is old enough to remember trolleys. "I like riding on trolleys and I like building model trolleys. In fact, I just like trolleys!" Frank is one of 80 members who build and run trolley models in various gauges similar to model trains. But unlike model trains, there are very few trolleys built by manufacturers, so Frank and many of his fellow members painstakingly build their own. Highly researched for authenticity, the models are accurate in scale and appearance. Members will tell you that building them is half the fun of being a trolley fanatic. "You'd be surprised by the materials we use to build the cars,' says J.H Richards."We use everything from steel to plastic foam, epoxy, even cardboard. You have to adapt to what's available or what you can afford. Nothing is cheap these days, and this hobby can get expensive." While the undercarriage and trucks (the wheels and axles) can be purchased, the members build the bodies themselves. At the meet members gather to show off their latest creations to each other and to the public, and to run their trolleys on portable layouts. The layouts, some nothing more than bare plywood, while others are elaborate miniature cities with streets and buildings, are also conceived and built by individual members of the club. Each layout is only big enough to fit in the back of a van or pickup truck, but tied together they can run the length and width of a large conference room. The trolleys traverse these layouts, jumping from one set of tracks and overhead electric wires to the next without a hitch. "The East Penn Traction Club of Philadelphia set a standard for the portable layouts years ago," explains Graham. "Because we have a standard height, anyone's layout will work with everybody's. It allows us to take our hobby with us and to share it with others. That's a major plus for enthusiasts, by sharing our hobby we keep the memory of trolleys alive in America."
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