2nd August 1873: The Clay Street Hill Railroad becomes San Francisco’s first cable car

The founder of the steam engine-powered, cable driven transportation system in San Francisco was British-born inventor Andrew Smith Hallidie. He originally travelled to California with his father to invest in the gold mining industry but later turned to manufacturing wire rope in San Francisco. By the end of the 1860s he had become a respected and wealthy businessman. A popular story says that he was inspired to create a cable-driven railway for the city’s notoriously steep hills to avoid horses being injured by runaway streetcars. An alternative origin story states that Hallidie took over an existing proposal from local attorney Benjamin H. Brooks, who was unable to raise the capital to fund its construction. Engineer William Eppelsheimer designed the Clay Street system which ran a total of 2,800 feet from the intersection of Clay and Kearny Streets to the crest of the hill, climbing 307 feet in the process. Driven by a moving cable running below the street that was powered by a steam engine in a central powerhouse, cars could attach and detach from the cable by the use of a grip mechanism. The first successful demonstration of the system occurred shortly after sunrise on 2 August. Some accounts say that, having looked down the steep hill, the first gripman hired by Hallidie refused to operate the car. Consequently Hallidie took control himself and completed the journey without any problems. At the bottom the car was moved onto a turntable, turned 180 degrees, and reattached to the cable to successfully ascend the hill. Following the positive test, San Francisco’s first cable car system began regular service on 1 September.