Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
February 13, 1851 A railway station in southeastern England’s village of Hamstreet first went into service. This station was built as part of the South Eastern Railway (SER), which operated in this area of the country from 1836 to 1922. At the time of its opening, the station was spelled out as “Ham Street” rather... Continue Reading →
February 10, 2013 Regular service began at 11:00 a.m. for the first fully automated line of the rapid transit system Metropolitana di Milano (Milan Metro) in Italy’s second most populous city. Line 5 -- also known as M5 or the Lilac Line -- had been formally inaugurated five days earlier. Those on hand for that... Continue Reading →
February 7, 1908 A newly established electric streetcar line connecting Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Annapolis was formally launched. The first trip of the Washington, Baltimore and Annapolis Electric Railway (WB&A) began in Baltimore at 11 o’clock that morning. “The cars are handsome, and of the newest design,” noted the next day’s edition of the Washington... Continue Reading →
February 6, 1995 While not yet completed, an Amtrak train station in San Diego County’s city of Solana Beach in southern California first went into service. Solana Beach Transit Center was built to take the place of a longtime station in the nearby city of Del Mar. In reporting on the Monday debut of Solana... Continue Reading →
February 3, 1978 The first section of the Washington Metro rapid transit system to be completed in Maryland was formally dedicated in Montgomery County just a few days before regular service began on that 5.5-mile (8.9-kilometer)-long extension. Approximately 35,000 people showed up on that cold winter day at the Silver Spring station, the northeastern end... Continue Reading →
January 29, 1944 With the United States still very much embroiled in World War II, the amphibious dock landing ship USS White Marsh (LSD-8) was first commissioned into the U.S. Navy. This ship was named after an unincorporated community in southeastern Virginia. White Marsh’s biggest claim to fame is that it was the birthplace of... Continue Reading →
January 27, 2024 In the northwestern part of Arizona’s capital city of Phoenix, more than 2,000 people turned out for the opening of a 1.6-mile (2.6-kilometer) extension of Valley Metro Rail. This light rail system’s newest segment at the time encompassed three stations altogether. One of these stations is Metro Parkway station, which is the... Continue Reading →
January 24, 1946 In southern Brazil’s state of Paraná, a major milestone took place for an airport that was completed the previous year. This airport, which had been jointly built by the Brazilian Air Force Ministry and U.S. Army as a military installation during the final months of World War II, was officially dedicated for... Continue Reading →
January 23, 1942 Nearly six weeks after the United States’ entry into World War II on the side of the Allies, a vessel constructed for the U.S. Navy by Ingalls Shipbuilding was launched. This Friday afternoon event took place at the company’s shipyard in the city of Pascagoula in Jackson County, Mississippi. The new ship... Continue Reading →
January 16, 1932 After approximately three decades of operation, a leading interurban transit line in the northwestern part of Ohio launched its final passenger car runs. This service had been incorporated as the Western Ohio Railway on October 11, 1900, under the laws of the Buckeye State. By 1903, the Western Railway covered 36 miles... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 