Boston Street Railway Association

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The Boston Street Railway Association (BSRA) is a

The BSRA maintains a website at thebsra.org. The site displays upcoming monthly meeting topics, information about the Association, and a mail-order and online bookstore.

History

The BSRA was founded in 1959 by ten railfans – nine in their twenties, and one teenager. That year, they purchased 1924-built Type 5 streetcar #5706 – one of only four such cars that remained – from a junkyard for $500 for future use on charter trips.

history in New England and the Boston area, its occasional fan trips on the Boston MBTA's system and other places, as well as for its bimonthly magazine, Rollsign.

Monthly meetings

For many years, monthly membership meetings were held in the

and videos on various topics in public transit, modern and historical, and often covers systems around the country and around the world. Any member or officer is allowed to make a presentation of their materials, provided it is scheduled in advance with the Entertainment Chairman.

Publications

The BSRA publishes Roll Sign bimonthly, and it is mailed to all members in good standing. It generally covers New England transportation news and events in articles and photos, submitted by publication staff and BSRA members. Recently,^[when?] the magazine has adopted full color printing for most of its issues, after remaining black and white for most of its existence.

The BSRA produces other publications, or "Bulletins", on a regular basis. These range in size from smaller booklets to full-size hardcover books. Topics generally include historical aspects of Boston's public transit, as well as transit in other New England cities like Providence and Newport, Rhode Island, and Fitchburg, Massachusetts. An example Bulletin, No. 24, is Boston Transit Equipment: 1979-2009, written by Michael R. Prescott and published in October 2009.

Streetcar restoration

The BSRA funds and manages the restoration of a historic "Type 5" Boston streetcar, No. 5706, which was built for the Boston Elevated Railway by J.G. Brill Co. in 1924. It was acquired by the BSRA's founding members in 1959, and the BSRA has been actively preserving and restoring the car ever since.

Fan trips

The BSRA

.

Board of directors

BSRA Elected Board of Directors as of 2018^[update]

Bradley H. Clarke	President
Thomas Athearn	Vice President
Thaddeus S. Anderson	Secretary
Charles Bahne Jr.	Treasurer
Michael R. Prescott	Publications Director
Nicholas Tomkavage	RollSign Director & Editor
David F. Harling	Director of Car Restoration
Jonathan Belcher	Director at Large
Daniel Cohen	Director at Large

See also

• History of the MBTA
• Seashore Trolley Museum
• Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
• Shore Line Trolley Museum

Notes and references

External links

• Official website.