The Kansas City, Clay County and St. Joseph Railway was an electrified
interurban
The Interurban (or radial railway in Europe and Canada) is a type of electric railway, with streetcar-like electric self-propelled rail cars which run within and between cities or towns. They were very prevalent in North America between 1900 a ...
railway that ran between
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...
, and
St. Joseph, Missouri
St. Joseph is a city in and the county seat of Buchanan County, Missouri. Small parts of St. Joseph extend into Andrew County. Located on the Missouri River, it is the principal city of the St. Joseph Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includ ...
, from the early 1900s until 1933. It was the longest of the various interurbans serving Kansas City running nearly and extended another to
Savannah, Missouri
Savannah is a city and county seat of Andrew County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,069 at the 2020 census.
History
Savannah was founded in 1841. The city was named after Savannah Woods, the child of a first settler. A post offic ...
.
The railway was built over the course of three years by electrical engineer George Townsend, brother to writer and congressman
Edward W. Townsend
Edward Waterman Townsend (February 10, 1855 – March 15, 1942) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician who represented New Jersey's New Jersey's 7th congressional district, 7th congressional district in the ...
and composer
Cornelia Townsend.
The interurban was a light rail system in which single cars traveled powered by an
overhead electric wire. The interurban ran hourly. Fare was $1.55 and it took nearly two hours from downtown to downtown. One line went from Kansas City to St. Joseph, another line went from Kansas City to Excelsior Springs.
The railway made Townsend wealthy.
George Townsend killed himself in Kansas City, MO on June 24, 1913 by jumping into the Missouri River.
See also
*
List of interurbans
This is a list of interurban railways in North America. Elsewhere, the term was not used or did not have the same meaning. The vast majority of these systems are defunct. All were opened primarily as passenger carriers, although many survived as f ...
References
External links
Interurban road
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kansas City Clay County Saint Joseph Railway
Kansas City interurban railways
Clay County, Missouri
Platte County, Missouri
Buchanan County, Missouri
1933 disestablishments in Missouri
Defunct Missouri railroads
Transportation in Kansas City, Missouri
St. Joseph, Missouri