Am wondering if anyone can supply information on this little VICTOR INTERURBAN RAILWAY narrow gauge trolley on display in Victor. During the period (about 100 years ago) when the big Cripple Creek mining district was active, the mining areas outside Victor and Cripple Creek were covered with a tangle of tracks, both narrow gauge (Florence & Cripple Creek), and standard (Midland Terminal and Colorado Springs & Cripple Creek District RY). Along with these operations, there were two electric trolly lines - one ran from Cripple Creek to Victor; the other connected the two towns and also served the communities of Elkton and Anaconda. Both systems shut down in 1922. Near as I can determine, at least part of this trolley system was narrow gauge.

This trolley is narrow gauge, but inside there are the following signs in Portugese: 3 LUGARES NA FRENTE (3 SEATS IN FRONT); 15 LUGARES NA RETAGUARDA (15 PLACES IN THE REAR); ENTRADA (ENTRY); S BENTO (S. BENEDICT); and SAIDA (maybe EXIT?)

I could find no markings indicating the make of the trolley, but markings on the the truck journals are M&T and MALEY & TAUTON LTD and what looks like (some letters are worn down or missing) WEDNESBURY ENGLAND. Wikipedia shows Maley & Tauton to be an an English tramway engineering company located in the town of Wednesfield in Staffordshire County that manufactured railway trucks for trolleys, and Wednesbury (on the journals) is also in Staffordshire County so may be the same or a near-by location as Wednesfield.

MY QUESTION: Is this one of the original trolleys that operated a century ago in the Cripple Creek district? It obviously came from somewhere in Central America, and were the Portugese signs never relettered in English for the Colorado use, or was it used here in this condition? OR is this a trolley that never ran in the district and is only similar to the originals, that the town of Victor acquired for display.

Any info on this would be appreciated.

Thanks, Greg Monroe