Project Sponsors: Jim Schantz, Rob Drye, and James van Bokkelen
Fundraising Goal for the next 5 Years: $3,500,000.00
Questions for the Project Sponsors? Want to get more involved in the project? Contact them here.
A concept drawing of the original vision to build an Exhibit Hall and adjoining Library & Archives, from the early 2000s.
Introduction
Transportation helped build America’s cities. In 1860s, when horse-powered street cars were proliferated from coast to coast cities could grow larger and businesses flourish. When electric propulsion as developed starting in the late 1880s, cities exploded along the new trolley lines.
For over 80 years the Seashore Trolley Museum has been preserving generations of urban transportation vehicles and using them to give visitors authentic period experiences. The museum has built a 1.5 mile electrified railroad—on the right of way of an original interurban trolley line—and from May to December gives visitors an opportunity to experience first-hand rides on century-old street and interurban electric cars. Currently most of this collection is housed in six buildings but with only three accessible to the public, the others being high density storage structures.
Our goal now is to construct a brand new display carhouse that will fit as many artifacts as possible in a weather-tight fashion, providing top-quality covered storage for approximately 30 cars and curating each artifact to best educate the general public, fulfilling our mission.
A concept drawing of the original vision to build an Exhibit Carhouse from the early 2000s.
The Next Carhouse
The museum has an active and widely-respected vehicle restoration program. The new facility will present many of the restored gems to the public – while still permitting the cars to be easily pulled out to give visitors rides – the best way to experience them.
The degree of craftsmanship on 120-year old cars is remarkable. But for museum visitors to fully appreciate these masterworks proper spacing and illumination is needed. Prominently displayed in this climate-controlled, year-round exhibit hall will be The Narcissus, the finest example of electric railway equipment to run in the State of Maine, which is well along in a $ 1,000,000 restoration program.
Support our Fundraising Campaign!
Funding will first be used to survey our campus to help us pick out the space that buildings of this size can be placed. Fundraising to hire a Project Manager, prepare the building site, and hiring the engineers and architects needed to design the building, railroad yard, and surrounding areas will follow before construction can begin. This building project will be one of the most complex Seashore Trolley Museum has every undertaken, but we are driven and ready to begin this journey with you on our side.
The most ambitious out of all of our New Direction Strategic Plan fundraising priorities, this new structure can be a reality, with your support! Donate to Fund 953 to make this 20+ year dream a reality!
Donate to Fund 953