Remembering Nashville’s streetcar era

Long before Nashville became a car-dependent city, streetcar lines crisscrossed the city. In this episode, we’ll learn which neighborhoods developed because of streetcar lines, and how this early form of public transportation shaped the city.

Listen as our guests teach us about equality, or the lack thereof, in the streetcar era and share stories of resistance before the Civil Rights Act. And now, why is the bus Nashville’s mode of public transportation? Will we ever see passenger rail in Nashville again?

Guests:

• Ralcon Wagner, historian and author of Nashville’s Streetcars and Interurban Railways
• David Steele Ewing, ninth generation Nashvillian, historian, tour guide and history consultant
• Linda Wynn, assistant director for state programs for the Tennessee Historical Commission, history department faculty member at Fisk University
• Debie Oeser Cox, ninth generation Davidson County resident, historian and retired Metro Nashville Archivist, writer for Nashville History blog

Related episodes: 

• Driving toward a better bus system for Nashville
• Hoofing It: Getting around Nashville without a car