This car’s exterior commemorates Washington DC, which operated PCC streetcars from 1937 to 1962.

One early complaint about streetcars was the visual impact of overhead wires. In 1893, Congress banned such wires in downtown Washington DC (about the time San Francisco did on Market Street). But in Washington the ban stuck, requiring a different technology to power streetcars. Washington put the wire in a conduit between the rails, making their tracks look just like cable car tracks. Traditional trolley poles were used on the outer ends of the line, switching to ‘plows’ where the wires ended.

When Washington purchased its 489 streamlined PCCs beginning in 1937, they had this dual-power technology. Ownership passed from Capital Transit to DC Transit in 1956. The new owner repainted the cars in this unlikely combination for the nation’s capital—based on his wife’s favorite colors.

PCC streetcars left Washington in 1962.