Los Angeles Railway Corporation (LARy) operated local streetcar service from 1895 to 1945. Originally owned and expanded by Henry Huntington, the Los Angeles Railway was sold to National City Lines in 1945, becoming the Los Angeles Transit Lines. The records in this collection were created between 1890 and 1946 and consist of correspondence, reports, contracts, deeds, photographs, maps, and employee news magazines.

The Los Angeles Railway Corporation (LARy) began as the Los Angeles Consolidated Electric Railway (LACE). LACE was incorporated in 1890 and soon began converting cable car and horse car lines to electric streetcar lines. In 1895, LACE bondholders renamed the company, the Los Angeles Railway Company. Complete electrification of the LARy system was reached in early 1896. Distinguished from the farther reaching Pacific Electric Railway (PE)Company's streetcars by vehicle color, LARy was also known as the Yellow Cars of Los Angeles. Service was largely focused in downtown Los Angeles. In 1898, Henry Huntington became the biggest investor in LARy and continued to expand the streetcar system. To compete against growing bus companies, LARy and PE created the Los Angeles Motor Coach Company to provide bus service throughout Los Angeles. Henry Huntington died in 1927 but controlling interest in LARy remained part of the Huntington estate until 1945 when the Fitzgerald Brothers purchased those shares. LARy became part of the National City Lines, was renamed the Los Angeles Transit Lines (LATL).

53 boxes 14.6 linear feet

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