Trailblazer was a suspended

monorail A monorail (from "mono", meaning "one", and "rail") is a railway in which the track consists of a single rail or a beam. Colloquially, the term "monorail" is often used to describe any form of elevated rail or people mover. More accurately, ...

that operated at

Fair Park Fair Park is a recreational and educational complex in Dallas, Texas, United States, located immediately east of downtown. The area is registered as a Dallas Landmark and National Historic Landmark; many of the buildings were constructed for th ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

from 1956 to 1964. It was the first commercially operated monorail system in the United States.

History

Envisioned as a demonstration project for transit solutions, Monorail, Inc. erected a short test system in

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

's Arrowhead Park as the Skyway Line in 1956. During the year, the company contracted with the

State Fair of Texas The State Fair of Texas is an annual state fair held in Dallas at historic Fair Park. The fair has taken place every year since 1886 except for varying periods during World War I and World War II as well as 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It ...

for an expanded project at Fair Park in Dallas. Originally envisioned to be long with terminals at the Automobile Building and Pennsylvania Avenue (with a midway station at Cotton Bowl Plaza), the line was later reduced to terminating at the Cotton Bowl. It was completely funded and constructed by Monorail, Inc and operated as a fairgrounds concession by Texas Skyways, Inc — making it the nation's first commercial operating monorail line Most of the materials (including the vehicle) were repurposed from the Houston test project. It opened with a fare of 25 cents in time for the 1956 State Fair of Texas, and became a top visitor attraction."Park Board Agrees to Monorail Plans," The Dallas Morning News, 08-14-1956 It also made an appearance in the 1962

musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the characters are interwoven into the narrative, sometimes accompanied by dancing. The songs usually advance the plot or develop the film's characters, but in some cases, they serve merely as breaks ...

''State Fair'', which was filmed in Fair Park.

Service and operations

A 51-passenger vehicle—named Trailblazer—was built of light blue fiberglass and powered by two Packard 352 gasoline engines. A two-man crew operated the system with the driver sitting above the passenger compartment atop one of two

bogie A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...

s. Trailblazer was supported by high inverted J-shaped steel towers spaced apart. The suspended vehicle ran above the ground on pneumatic tires with a maximum speed of ; however, the system at Fair Park was limited by the acceleration possible between stations. The monorail operated for several years during the State Fair of Texas and year-round on weekends. The system became a showcase of transportation technology for Dallas and Monorail, Inc, attracting the attention of urban planners and city leaders from around the world. 30 months after installation the system had attracted 50,000 riders; by the end of its life it had carried over 1,000,000 people. In April 1958 a small fire caused the evacuation of Trailblazer, but the six passengers and two crew members escaped unharmed. The system was closed in 1964 due to diminishing novelty and maintenance, being replaced by the Swiss Sky Ride. The track was dismantled and the vehicle was scheduled to retire to the Goodell Monorail Museum in Houston. Several years later, however, the monorail vehicle was found in a salvage yard. It was later purchased and moved to the town of

Wills Point, Texas Wills Point is a city in Van Zandt County, Texas, United States. The population was 3,524 at the 2010 census. History Founded in 1873, Wills Point gets its name from an early American settler, William Wills, who had arrived in the area ''circa'' ...

and converted to a residence, where it remains today."A Trailblazer’s resting spot
, The Houston Chronicle, 01-20-2009

References

External links

Photo in Fair ParkPhoto of Automobile Building TerminalDallas Public Library ImagesVideo of Trailblazer"Living in a monorail car"
{{US non-airport people movers defunct monorails monorails in the United States passenger rail transportation in Texas railway lines opened in 1956 railway lines closed in 1964 State Fair of Texas suspended monorails transportation in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex