The Interurban Era

"The interurban was an American transportation phenomenon. Evolved from the urban streetcar, the interurban appeared shortly before the dawn of the 20th century, grew to a vast network of over 18,000 miles in two decades of exuberant growth, and then all but vanished after barely three decades of usefulness. But within its brief life span the interurban bridged the gap between a horse and buggy nation and a modern America that rides on rubber over endless lanes of concrete and asphalt. It changed the ways of rural life forever, and frequently set a pattern for metropolitan growth that continues even today."