She was once vital transportation between Kingsland and St. Marys. She was once someone’s kitchen. And now she’s one of St. Mary’s most endearing attractions—the Toonerville Trolley.

From 1928 to 1935, passengers, mail and freight rode the rails of Camden County in the whimsical Toonerville Trolley that is now on display next to St. Marys Welcome Center just three blocks from the waterfront. The body of this
little car was handcrafted by a local boatbuilder and placed on a Model T Ford truck chassis with its wheels modified for rail use.

Passengers boarded in St. Marys at the waterfront station or flagged the car along the track. At the end of the line, well-greased turntables enabled the operator to turn the car single-handed for return trips.

The Toonerville Trolley gained national recognition when cartoonist Roy Crane rode into St. Marys on the trolley and sketched local scenes to appear in his Wash Tubs and Easy comic strip.

The quaint little car played a major role in Crane’s story line, along with Oak Grove Cemetery, Orange Hall, the Riverview Hotel, and other buildings in the downtown area. When St. Marys Railroad abandoned the trolley for a more modern Ford truck, a local resident decided to incorporate the wooden body into a small dwelling on the waterfront. It was 1974 when the St. Marys Kiwanis Club took on restoration of the trolley as a project. Using a 1924 Model T Ford truck and volunteer workers from the local paper mill, the funny little rail car was restored and given heavy duty tires to make it road worthy. Trolley tours were conducted for two summers, and then the vintage machine was retired to its current place of honor on Osborne Street.

Visitors can view the glass-encased trolley next to St. Marys’ Welcome Center at 406 Osborne Street.

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