The J. G. Brill Company manufactured

streetcars A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...

,Young, Andrew D. (1997). ''Veteran & Vintage Transit'', p. 101. St. Louis: Archway Publishing. interurban coaches,

motor bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used ...

es,

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...

es and

railroad cars A railroad car, railcar ( American and Canadian English), railway wagon, railway carriage, railway truck, railwagon, railcarriage or railtruck (British English and UIC), also called a train car, train wagon, train carriage or train truc ...

in the United States for nearly 90 years, hence the longest-lasting trolley and

interurban The interurban (or radial railway in Canada) is a type of electric railway, with tram-like electric self-propelled railcars which run within and between cities or towns. The term "interurban" is usually used in North America, with other terms u ...

manufacturer. At its height, Brill was the largest manufacturer of streetcars and interurban cars in the US and produced more streetcars, interurbans and gas-electric cars than any other manufacturer, building more than 45,000 streetcars alone. The company was founded by John George Brill in 1868 in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, as a

horsecar A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is a tram or streetcar pulled by a horse. Summary The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of public transport, public rail transport, ...

manufacturing firm. Its large factory complex was located in southwest Philadelphia at 62nd St and Woodland Avenue, adjacent to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad tracks. At its peak of operation, it was one of Philadelphias's largest employers. Over the years, it absorbed numerous other manufacturers of trolleys and

s, such as Kuhlman in Cleveland and Jewett in Indiana. In 1944, with rail car business diminishing, it merged with the

American Car and Foundry Company ACF Industries, originally the American Car and Foundry Company (abbreviated as ACF), is an American manufacturer of railroad railroad car, rolling stock. One of its subsidiaries was once (1925–54) a manufacturer of Motor bus, motor coaches ...

(ACF) to become ACF-Brill. Although the company ceased production in 1954, some of its interurbans served the

area until the 1980s and similarly in Australia.

History

Trolleys and interurban cars

In 1868, the Brill company was founded as ''J.G. Brill and Sons''. After James Rawle joined the firm in 1872 it was renamed ''The J.G. Brill Company''. In 1902, Brill bought out the American Car Company; in 1904, G. C. Kuhlman Car Company (Cleveland), then the John Stephenson Company (New Jersey); and in 1907

Wason Manufacturing Company The Wason Manufacturing Company was a maker of railway passenger coaches and streetcars during the 19th and early 20th century. The company was founded in 1845 in Springfield, Massachusetts by Charles Wason (1816-1888) and Thomas Wason (1811-187 ...

(Massachusetts). Brill acquired a controlling share of the Danville Car Company in 1908, dissolving it in 1911, then the Canadian railway car builder Preston Car Company in 1921, which ceased operating in 1923. With rapid internal growth plus these acquisitions, Brill became the largest rail car manufacturer in the world. As large orders continued to be won, new facilities continued to be added in Philadelphia, including steel forges and cavernous erecting shops. Brill's primary (and large) plant was at 62nd and Woodland Ave., adjacent to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad which it used for shipping its products. One particularly large order in 1911, was for 1,500 streetcars for the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company. It took two years to build those trolleys, with delivery rates at times exceeding 100 cars a month. All told, more than 30,000 rail vehicles were produced at the Brill plant. In its best years, a workforce of 3,000 Philadelphians was employed by Brill, with many being skilled laborers and carpenter craftsmen. The Brill Company's primary competitors over the years were the St. Louis Car Company, the Cincinnati Car Company, and Pullman. Cincinnati was the first trolley manufacturer to use aluminum, this on the Cincinnati and Lake Erie's innovative lightweight and fast 1930 "Red Devils." These ended life on Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley Transit. St Louis Car outlasted Brill by being a major builder of subway cars for Chicago and New York City. Pullman tended to build more massive cars, such as for Chicago's North Shore and South Shore lines.

Gas electric motor cars

Heavy weight full railroad-size gas electric cars capable of towing up to two trailers were manufactured using General Electric Company electrical equipment and various engine manufacturers, for branch line service that had minimal passenger traffic. This was to comply with U.S. Post Office contracts requiring reduced crew sizes. The Pennsylvania Railroad was a large purchaser.

Buses

The rapidly growing ownership and use of automobiles created a huge demand for paved roads and streets. Cities and towns struggling to cover the cost of these projects during the Great Depression applied "paving" taxes to the privately-owned trolley and streetcar companies, which combined with lower ridership due to the Depression led to the bankruptcy of many trolley and streetcar railways, especially in smaller centres. In turn, this collapsed the demand for new trolleys and streetcars. Attempts by Brill to provide acceptable new designs went nowhere. The last rail cars built by J.G. Brill were 25 streamliner Brilliners for Atlantic City in 1939, and a final ten PCC-competitive Brilliner streetcars for Philadelphia's Red Arrow Lines two years later. Brill's production was dramatically shifted to rubber-tired vehicles. More than 8,000 gasoline- and electric-powered buses ( trolley buses) were built in the 1940s. By the early 1950s the bus orders had diminished. In March 1954, the Brill plant was sold to the Penn Fruit Company and a strip mall was built on the eastern end of the site. In 1926,

acquired a controlling interest in what had become the Brill Corporation. The new structure consisted of: * ACF Motors Company, which owned Hall-Scott Motor Car Company (100%) and controlled 90% of Fageol Motors; and * the J.G. Brill Company. In 1944, the two companies merged, forming the ACF-Brill Motors Company. Sebree, Mac; and Ward, Paul (1973). ''Transit's Stepchild: The Trolley Coach'', p. 127. Los Angeles: Interurbans. LCCN 73-84356. In the same year, ACF-Brill licensed

Canadian Car and Foundry The Canadian Car & Foundry Company, Limited, and from 1957 onwards the Canadian Car Company Limited, was a manufacturer of buses, railway rolling stock, forestry equipment, and later aircraft for the Canadian market. CC&F history goes back to 18 ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

to manufacture and sell throughout Canada motor buses and trolley coaches of their design as Canadian Car-Brill. The firm built about 1,100 trolley buses and a few thousand buses under the name. Brill had earlier (in 1908) established a company in France (Cie. J.G. Brill of Gallardon, which was sold to Electroforge in 1935). In 1946, Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation acquired a controlling interest in ACF-Brill for $7.5 million. Consolidated Vultee was sold the following year to the Nashville Corporation, which in 1951 sold its share to investment firm Allen & Co. In early 1954, the Brill name disappeared when ACF-Brill ceased production and subcontracted its remaining orders. Brill granted licenses to build its vehicles to the Canadian Car and Foundry Company ( Peter Witt streetcars, trolley buses and

es), and the

South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the organisation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Australian Natio ...

(Model 75 railcars).

Products

Birney A Birney or Birney Safety Car is a type of streetcar that was manufactured in the United States in the 1910s and 1920s. The design was small and light and was intended to be an economical means of providing frequent service at a lower infrastruc ...

safety car – by subsidiary, the American Car Company. *Traditional arch-windowed, all-wood interurban cars. 1890-1920s. *Model 55 (1924–38), Model 65 (1924) and Model 75 (1924–) railcars. Almost 300 were built for US and foreign railroads. A major purchaser was the

, which bought 12 Model 55 power cars plus trailers in 1924, followed in 1928 by 39 Model 75 power cars (all but the first being constructed in South Australia at the

Islington Railway Workshops The Islington Railway Workshops are railway workshops in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. They were the chief railway workshops of the South Australian Railways, and are still in operation today. *Steel heavy interurban cars built 1920-1930s. The Brill "Center Door" car was typical of suburban trolleys and interurbans built around 1920. These tended to be large, heavy, double-ended cars, with passengers entering and exiting via doors located at the center of the car. These cars required a two man crew, a conductor at the doors, and an operator. At a time of difficult financial conditions, in order to eliminate the conductor, many were rebuilt into one-man cars. *Master Unit - built 1931-36. Steel frame with aluminum side construction to reduce weight, the Master Unit had a traditional GE or Westinghouse control stand and was capable of 70 mph. The 1930s Great Depression brought declining ridership and revenue to most streetcar companies. The answer was to reduce operating costs and keep going or to abandon outright. On the Philadelphia and West Chester interurban, their Master Unit purchase “80 cars,” as they were known, the lighter weight reduced electricity consumption. Built for one man operation. * Brilliner – Brill's competitor to the PCC (Presidents' Conference Committee) car looked somewhat like the first PCCs and had a foot operated speed control like an automobile accelerator pedal. The Brilliner was not successful when compared to the PCC. Underpowered. Few were sold, whereas PCCs were well sold worldwide. Twenty-four built for Atlantic City's Miss America Fleet. *Brill "Bullet" car, 1929–1932. For suburban/interurban use. *Brill diners – Brill sold and designed diners, generally through one of its four subsidiaries, the

. The last one believed to be operating is the Capitol Diner in

Lynn, Massachusetts Lynn is the eighth-largest List of municipalities in Massachusetts, municipality in Massachusetts, United States, and the largest city in Essex County, Massachusetts, Essex County. Situated on the Atlantic Ocean, north of the Boston city line ...

, which is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. * Peter Witt streetcar **Large cars with trailers **Small cars *Numerous models of

es, including T30, T40, 40SMT, 44SMT and, as ACF-Brill, TC44 and T46/TC46 *C-36 city bus *IC-41 intercity bus

Bullet interurban cars

The lines that operated interurban passenger cars recognized in the mid-1920s that they needed faster, quieter, more power-efficient equipment. Until then, the wooden and most of the steel interurban cars were large, sat high, and were heavy. Streetcars were slow, noisy, and clumsy to operate using the motor controller "stand" of the time. Car manufacturers such as Cincinnati Car Company (who already in 1922 made a lightweight, albeit slow, interurban), St. Louis Car Company, Pullman, and Brill worked to design equipment for a better ride at high speed, improved passenger comfort, and reduced power consumption. This particularly involved designing low-level trucks (

bogie A bogie ( ) (or truck in North American English) comprises two or more Wheelset (rail transport), wheelsets (two Railroad wheel, wheels on an axle), in a frame, attached under a vehicle by a pivot. Bogies take various forms in various modes ...

s) able to handle rough track at speed. Brill, in conjunction with Westinghouse and

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

, worked on a new interurban design and on a new streetcar design (the PCC). The interurban design result was the aluminum-and-steel, wind-tunnel-developed, slope-roof "

Bullet A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. They are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax; and are made in various shapes and constru ...

multiple-unit A multiple-unit train (or multiple unit (MU)) is a self-propelled train composed of one or more carriages joined, and where one or more of the carriages have the means of propulsion built in. By contrast, a locomotive-hauled train has all ...

cars, the first of which were purchased in 1931 by the

Philadelphia and Western Railroad The Philadelphia and Western Railroad was a high-speed, third rail-equipped, commuter-hauling interurban electric railroad operating in the western suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is now SEPTA, SEPTA's Norristown High Speed Line, thoug ...

, a third-rail line running from 69th Street Upper Darby to Norristown in the Philadelphia region. This line still runs as SEPTA's

Norristown High Speed Line The M, formerly known as the Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL), is a interurban light rapid transit line in the SEPTA Metro network, running between the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and the Norristown Transportation Center ...

. The Bullets could attain speeds as high as . They were very successful, and operated until the 1980s, but Brill sold few others. Only the central New York state interurban Fonda, Johnstown, and Gloversville Railroad ordered Bullets, albeit a single-ended, single-unit "trolley-ized" version. Five were procured in mid-Depression 1932 for passenger business that was rapidly declining. In 1936, the closing FJ&G sold these Bullets to the Bamberger Railroad in Utah, which ran them in high-speed service between Salt Lake City and Ogden until the mid-1950s. Three of the SEPTA Bullet cars are now at the

Seashore Trolley Museum Seashore Trolley Museum, located in Kennebunkport, Maine, Kennebunkport, Maine, United States, is the world's first and largest museum of mass transit vehicles. While the main focus of the collection is Tram, trolley cars (trams), it also incl ...

. One is at the Electric City Trolley Museum in Scranton. The only operational Bullet car, No. 205, may be ridden at the Rockhill Trolley Museum in Orbisonia, Pennsylvania. One was at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri, but was scrapped. One is at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington, Pennsylvania. A Bamberger Bullet is in the

Southern California Railway Museum The Southern California Railway Museum (SCRM, reporting mark OERX), formerly known as the Orange Empire Railway Museum, is a railroad museum in Perris, California, United States. It was founded in 1956 at Griffith Park in Los Angeles before movin ...

in Perris, California, and another has been preserved by the Utah State Railroad Museum. A third is a part of a restaurant building in Springville, Utah, but is barely recognizable as a Bullet. Brill also manufactured the Pack Howitzer 75 mm cannon for the U.S. Military during the years between WWI and WWII.

Brill look-alike cars in the 2010s

Since 2015 the

Kyushu Railway Company The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle (JR Kyushu), Beetle hydrofoil service across th ...

, one of the constituent companies of the

Japan Railways Group The Japan Railways Group, commonly known as the or simply JR, is a network of railway companies in Japan formed after the Corporate spin-off, division and privatization of the government-owned Japanese National Railways (JNR) on April 1, 1987. ...

, has operated the Aru Ressha "sweet train", a deluxe excursion train. It comprises two power cars and two newly-built trailer cars based on a set of 5 luxury Brill cars the original

Kyushu Railway was a company that built and operated railways in Kyushu, one of four main islands of Japan. Most of its lines came under the control of Japanese Government Railways following nationalization in 1907, and many are now operated by Kyushu Railway ...

ordered in 1908 but never used before nationalization. Scale models of the original cars at the Hara Model Railway Museum were used to derive the design.

References

Bibliography

* Middleton, William D. ''The Interurban Era'', Kalmbach Publishing Company, Milwaukee, 2000 965 . (Coverage: list of US interurban car manufacturers, pp 416–417; Bullet design, pp 68–70.) * Volkmer, William D. ''Pennsylvania Trolleys in Color'', Morning Sun Books, Scotch Plains, 1998. Vol. 2. . (Coverage: photographs of Brilliners, Bullets and other Brill designs, on Philadelphia and Western line and in shops.) * Hilton, George W. & Due, John F. ''The Electric Interurban Railways in America'',

Stanford University Press Stanford University Press (SUP) is the publishing house of Stanford University. It is one of the oldest academic presses in the United States and the first university press to be established on the West Coast. It is currently a member of the Ass ...

, Stanford, reissue 2000. . (Coverage: development of improved interurban car design.) * Springirth, Kenneth C. ''Suburban Philadelphia Trolleys'', Arcadia Publishing, Charleston, 2007. . (Coverage: development of Bullet design.) * Bradford, Francis H. & Dias, Ric A. ''Hall-Scott: the untold story of a great American engine maker'', SAE International Book Publishing, Warrendale, 2007. .

External links

History of J.G. Brill Company
* Th

including approximately 16,000 photographs, are available for research use at the

Historical Society of Pennsylvania The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historic research facility headquartered on Locust Street in Center City Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chron ...

.
Brill Bullet
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brill, J.G., Company * Defunct bus manufacturers of the United States Defunct rolling stock manufacturers of the United States Tram manufacturers Trolleybus manufacturers Manufacturing companies based in Philadelphia Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1868 Manufacturing companies disestablished in 1954 1868 establishments in Pennsylvania 1954 disestablishments in Pennsylvania Electric vehicle manufacturers of the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in Pennsylvania