Signal Mountain Electric Railroad

Charles E. James was the visionary behind transforming the "rock-strewn wilderness" of Walden's Ridge into the community of Signal Mountain.

In a relatively short time, he’d constructed 100 beautiful homes, and a handsome fireproof hotel of 250 rooms, created a picturesque lake for boating and bathing, and an excellent 18-hole golf course.

Engineers had to literally blow off the face of the mountain. This created a narrow passage with a 200-foot solid rock bluff on one side and a 1,000-foot drop to the Tennessee River on the other.

Chattanooga Traction Company was created to build and operate electric interurban railway lines, including a line that would cross the Tennessee River and extend to the top of his new community.

Construction and grading began in 1912, with track laying beginning in June 1913.

The route followed a zigzag course up the slopes of the ridge reaching the Signal Mountain Inn by October of the same year. A 24-foot road was also created for the growing automobile traffic.

The trolley route and auto route took mostly different paths as the rail line required a maximum grade of 5.6%.

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Signal Mountain Route
Between 1913 and 1934, the Chattanooga Traction Company operated an electric trolley passenger line up Signal Mountain. The route you can drive today differs greatly from the more gradual incline of the tracks.

Explore the Trolley Line in 3D

LIDAR imagery confirms the original route.

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Chattanooga Traction Company Timeline

  1. C.E. James and his associates filed for a charter for the Chattanooga Traction Company.

  2. Grading the mountain line and building an adjacent 24-foot road begins.

  3. The Richmond Curve

    Richmond Curve

  4. Grading work up Walden’s Ridge completed.

  5. The first spike was driven at the corner of Frazier Avenue and North Market.

  6. Service was inaugurated as far as James Point. Initially, passengers were met by automobiles to complete the trip to the Inn.

  7. The line reached its ultimate goal, coming within a block of the Signal Mountain Inn.

  8. Signal Mountain Casino

    Signal Mountain Casino

  9. Mountain Land Company

    Mountain Land Company

    Chattanooga Daily - Times May 31, 1914

  10. Plans were announced to extend the line eight miles through Dry Valley toward Hixson.

  11. The Red Bank line officially went into operation after delays in securing copper wire.

  12. Following the completion of the Market Street Bridge, the CTC secured a franchise to move its interurban service over the new structure.

  13. C.E. James, the “Master Builder” of the line, passed away.

  14. CEJAMES obit

    The Chattanooga News - Oct 2 1925

  15. TractionLine

    July 4, 1934 - Final Run of Passenger Trolley

  16. The local owners granted an option to the CNO&TP (Southern Railway) to purchase the CTC’s stock.

  17. Annual passenger numbers had plummeted from over 575,000 to approximately 133,000 due to the rise of the private automobile.

  18. The Railroad and Public Utilities Commission of Tennessee authorized the CTC to abandon all passenger service.

  19. The mountain segment of the line was scrapped, and the terminal property on top of the mountain was deeded to the Town of Signal Mountain.

  20. Freight and passenger service to Signal Mountain officially ended, with bus service taking its place.

Signal Mountain
The Chattanooga News - Dec 30, 1924
Signal Mountain trolley
Signal Mountain Route Brochure
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1913 Streetcar Map - David Steinberg | Chattanooga Public Library
Signal
Signal
Locomotive Engineers Journal - 1915
Signal
Chattanooga Daily Times — Oct 23, 1926
View Signal Mountain Road Under Construction View Signal Mountain Road Under Construction