- Andrew Smith Hallidie
Andrew Smith Hallidie (
16 March 1836 –24 April 1900 ) was the promoter of theClay Street Hill Railroad in San Francisco, USA. This was the world's first practical cable car system, and Hallidie is often therefore regarded as the inventor of the cable car and father of the present daySan Francisco cable car system , although both claims are open to dispute. He also introduced the manufacture ofwire rope toCalifornia , and at an early age was a prolific builder of bridges in the Californian interior.Early life
Andrew Smith Hallidie was born as plain "Andrew Smith". His birthplace is variously quoted as
London inEngland ,ref|kahnref|thompson orDunfermline inScotland .ref|coe He later adopted the name Hallidie in honor of his uncle, Sir Andrew Hallidie, who had been a royal physician to King William IV and to Queen Victoria.Andrew Smith's father, also called Andrew Smith, was an engineer and inventor with several patents to his name, most importantly those for the making of wire ropes, granted from 1835 to 1849. The younger Andrew Smith was initially apprenticed to a
machine shop anddrawing office . In 1852 both father and son set sail forCalifornia , where the father had an interest in some gold mines inMariposa County . These proved disappointing, and the father returned to England in 1853. The son, however, remained in California, and became a gold miner whilst also working as ablacksmith , surveyor and builder of bridges.In 1856, whilst working on the construction of a
flume at a mine at American Bar, Hallidie was consulted over the rapid rate of wear on the ropes used to lower cars of rock from the mine to the mill. These ropes were wearing out in 75 days. Hallidie improvised machinery to make a replacement wire rope, which lasted two years, and in the process began wire rope manufacture in California.Wire rope and bridges
Hallidie abandoned mining in 1857 and returned to San Francisco. Under the name of
A. S. Hallidie & Co. , he commenced the manufacture of wire rope in a building at Mason and Chestnut Streets, using the machinery from American Bar.Hallidie was also heavily involved in bridge building. During 1861-2, he constructed bridges across the
Klamath River at Weitchpeck, at Nevada City, across theAmerican River at Folsom, and across the Bear, Trinity, Stanislaus, and Tuolumne rivers. In 1863 he built a bridge across theFraser River , 10 miles upstream of Yale at Alexandra inBritish Columbia .Also in 1863, Hallidie married Martha Elizabeth Woods. They had no children. In 1864, he became a
United States citizen. In 1865, he gave up bridge building in order to devote himself entirely to his wire rope manufacturing business, which was experiencing increased demand from the silver mines on theComstock Lode .In 1867, Hallidie invented the
Hallidie ropeway , a form ofaerial tramway used for transporting ore and other material across mountainous districts, which he successfully installed a number of locations, and later patented.Cable cars
Accounts differ as to exactly how involved Hallidie was in the inception of the Clay Street Hill Railway. One versionref|thompson has him taking over the promotion of the line when the original promoter,
Benjamin Brooks , failed to raise the necessary capital. In another version,ref|kahn Hallidie was the instigator, inspired by a desire to reduce the suffering incurred by the horses that hauled streetcars up Jackson Street, from Kearny to Stockton Street.There is also doubt as to when exactly the first run of the cable car occurred. The franchise required a first run no later than
August 1 1873 , however at least one sourceref|thompson reports that the run took place a day late, onAugust 2 , but that the city chose not to void the franchise. Some accounts say that the first gripman hired by Hallidie looked down the steep hill from Jones and refused to operate the car, so Hallidie took the grip himself and ran the car down the hill and up again without any problems.The engineer of the Clay Street line was
William Eppelsheimer . However, given Hallidie's previous experience of cables and cable haulage systems, it seems unlikely that he did not contribute to the design of the system.The Clay Street line started regular service on
September 1 1873 and was a financial success. In addition, Hallidie's patents on the cable car design were stringently enforced on cable car promoters around the world, and made him a rich man.Other activities
Hallidie occupied many positions in San Francisco society. He served as a regent of the
University of California from 1868 until his death, and as a trustee and vice-president of theSan Francisco Mechanics Institute in 1864 and president from 1868 to 1877 and from 1893 to 1895. In 1873, Hallidie stood for election to theCalifornia State Senate , and in 1875 he stood for election asmayor of San Francisco, but in both cases he was defeated.Hallidie served as trustee of the First Unitarian Church, and as its
moderator in 1883 and 1884. He held memberships in theAmerican Society of Inventors ,American Geographical Society ,California Academy of Sciences , and other scientific and literary bodies. He was a member of the oldCalifornia Historical Society and of the Pacific-Union, Olympic, and Sierra clubs.A. S. Hallidie & Co. became the
California Wire Works in 1883 with Hallidie as president. In 1895, it was sold toWashburn and Moen Co. , the oldest manufacturers of wire in the United States (established in 1831).Hallidie died at the age of 65 at his San Francisco residence.
References
* Edgar Myron Kahn (1940). [http://www.sfmuseum.net/bio/hallidie.html California Historical Society Quarterly - Andrew Smith Hallidie] . Retrieved
May 27 2005 .
* Joe Thompson (1998-2004). [http://www.cable-car-guy.com/html/ccwho.html Who Was Important in the History of the Cable Car?] . RetrievedMay 27 2005 .
* City Of Edinburgh Council (2004). [http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/Libraries/History_Sphere/Americanlinks/Fife.html Edinburgh City Libraries - Scottish American Links] . RetrievedMay 27 2005 .
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