Savannah, Skidaway & Seaboard Railroad Chartered in December 1866, the 11-mile line opened in 1868 connecting Savannah and Montgomery, Georgia. Its rail cars were initially drawn by horses or mules; steam power came later. Besides Montgomery, the company planned to serve Isle of Hope, Thunderbolt, Beaulieu, and White Bluff. In early 1874, the SS&S merged with the Savannah & Thunderbolt Railroad, a competing line incorporated in December 1871. Meanwhile, two other new companies were coming on the scene, the Coast Line and the Barnard & Anderson Street Railway Company, both established in 1872. The Coast Line's cars began operating to Thunderbolt in 1875 and the Barnard's initiated service two years later. In 1876, the SS&S was consolidated with the Coast Line to form the Savannah, Skidaway & Coast Line Railroad, only to be sold and reborn in 1882 as the City & Suburban Railway, which soon acquired the Barnard & Anderson. Within a few years several more lines started up between the city and its suburbs: The Savannah Street & Rural Resort Railroad, also known as the Belt Line, started operations in early 1888. The Savannah & Isle of Hope was chartered in 1889. The Suburban & West End Railway was incorporated in 1890. The Vernon Park Railway was also incorporated in 1890. The Electric Railway Company, incorporated in 1890, leased the Savannah & Isle of Hope. In 1891, the Savannah Street & Rural Resort Railroad was renamed the Savannah Street Railroad. In 1892, Henry Parsons formed the Savannah, Thunderbolt & Isle of Hope Railroad, absorbing the older Coast Line. The Electric Railway Company gained control of the Belt Line (the Savannah Street Railroad) in 1892. In 1897, the Electric Railway Company was sold to the Savannah, Thunderbolt & Isle of Hope. In 1902, Savannah Electric Company bought the Savannah & Isle of Hope, the City & Suburban, and the Savannah, Thunderbolt & Isle of Hope. Eventually all of the streetcar lines came under the ownership of Savannah Electric & Power Company (SEPCO), a successor of Savannah Electric Company. 1911 map (245K)   Georgia's Railroad History & Heritage. Copyright, Steve Storey. Railroad History | The Depot List | Locomotives On Display | Odds & Ends | Sources & References | Home