Richmond Had Rails: a kind of time travel

From Richmond Had Rails FaceBook page:

VCU Libraries today announced the launch of an interactive version of a Richmond map atlas from 1889, allowing for a kind of time travel, because through the use of overlays, viewers may compare the cityscape of then with that of today (courtesy an integration with Google Maps). The application features photos and illustrations due to linkage with VCU Libraries’ extensive collections of antique images.
Of interest to those following the progress of “Richmond Had Rails” is that the Baist Atlas Map received publication just a year after the trolleys started rolling in Richmond. On Panel 16, which surveys Church Hill, you can see the site of the shops where Julian Sprague and his team originated the first ever city-wide electric powered streetcar. The technology utilized then is, with some improvements, still what powers transit throughout the world, when Richmond had rails.

Here’s the interactive Baist Atlas: http://labs.library.vcu.edu/baist-atlas/
And a link to a VCU news story: https://news.vcu.edu/article/Interactive_map_from_1889_reveals_Richmonds_rich_architectural

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