This locally produced postcard, from a photograph by one Tom Kirkman, has a message from Nellie to Annie hoping she gets better soon. It dates from around 1905. It shows Bury Corporation tram 17 at Jericho terminus, to the east of the system, waiting to depart to Bury.
In 1903 Bury Corporation took over the tramways that were operated within their boundaries by the Manchester, Bury, Rochdale & Oldham Steam Tramways Company and set about electrifying them, the first route opening on 3rd June of that year. Further routes were added bringing the total to about thirteen and a half miles of standard gauge track over which they ultimately operated 60 tramcars. There was through running with the tramways of Bolton, Rochdale, Salford, Manchester, Middleton and Heywood. The depot was in Rochdale Road and the livery was red and cream.
Car 17 in our postcard was one of a batch of fourteen 4-wheel cars built in 1903 for the opening by G.F.Milnes of Birkenhead, together with fourteen bogie cars. They had McGuire Columbian trucks, probably produced locally, each with two 25hp Westinghouse motors, and used Westinghouse controllers. The McGuire Manufacturing Company of Chicago, USA had a works in Bury which was taken over by Mountain & Gibson in 1904, who subsequently produced trucks to McGuire's designs under licence. The trams seated 22 inside and 34 on top. As built, they were open-top as seen here, but open-balcony top covers from local firm Wilson & Stockall and from UEC were fitted to the batch between 1905 and 1909. That on car 17 was from Wilson & Stockall in 1909.
Traffic on this tramway and others locally declined in the 1930s, with most of the through running ceasing. Bury lasted through the war with the last tram running on 13th February 1949.
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