Minnesota Streetcar Museum (MSM)

06/07/2026

A recent clean-out of the Como-Harriet Streetcar Line carbarn uncovered a number of uncatalogued artifacts, including this changer! As alluded to by the name of the device, a changer was used to make change for passengers presenting larger denomination bills or coins, or issue streetcar tokens.

What is interesting about this changer is that Twin City Lines crews could load the changer by dumping assorted coins and tokens in the upper hopper, crank the handle, and the coins and tokens would be sorted accordingly. Our own testing of pennies, nickels, and Twin City Lines tokens confirmed this changer still works well! We also found the changer in an interior photo of a Twin City Lines PCC, so we have installed it on the dash of PCC 322, as shown here!

Learning more about the history of this model of changer has confounded us so far. The wording on the lid to the hopper indicates C KESSLER ST PAUL MINN. Online searches for "Kessler Changer" or similar search terms have shown a different model of a changer, not this one. Do any of our followers have knowledge on this type of changer? We would appreciate any leads!

(Story: Brian A. Long; photo: Long)

06/06/2026

Excelsior Art on the Lake is only 1 week away! The Excelsior Streetcar Line will be operating continuous shuttle service from 10am-4pm. Ride the trolley to the carbarn, take your time touring the other streetcars and catch the next one back to Water Street. Fare is only $3 & kids 3 and under ride free.

Excelsior Streetcar Line · Art on the Lake
June 13th - 14th
10am - 4pm

06/03/2026

Last Friday, a group of our Motorettes from the Como-Harriet and Excelsior lines gathered off duty to enjoy some time together, have some fun and discuss plans for our upcoming Motorette First Hire Day.

This annual special event honors the 338 women hired by the Twin City Rapid Transit Company in 1943 to help keep the streetcars running while many male TCRT employees left to serve during World War II. The dedication and professionalism of these women became an important part of Twin Cities transit history and helped pave the way for future generations of local women in transportation.

Join us on July 12 from 1 to 7pm to celebrate their legacy, learn more about the history of the Motorettes and the Twin Cities/Twin Ports streetcar systems, and enjoy a full day of service operated by an all-female crew! 🚋

06/02/2026

05/30/2026

Looking out of place, Chicago City Railway 6219 is being tested on Snelling Avenue in Saint Paul in 1924. The Twin City Lines streetcar behind it provides a nice opportunity for readers to make their own visual comparison. Having just been built in the Snelling Shops, the streetcar will soon be loaded onto a freight train, along with its sister cars, and will be headed for service in Chicago. The streetcar is the product of the Light Weight Noiseless Electric Street Car Company (LWNESCCo), which was a short-lived streetcar-building venture that contracted construction with the Snelling Shops. Ultimately, LWNESCCo completed 50 streetcars for Chicago (20 cars for the Chicago City Railway and 30 cars for the Chicago Railways Company), as well as with multiple other cities during its short run in streetcar building between 1924 and 1928 (story: Brian A. Long; photo: MSM).

05/26/2026

We hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Memorial Day weekend. Thank you to everyone who joined us yesterday to take a ride down to Lakewood, to chat with our living historians, or just to take a ride to cool off. Now that summer hours have resumed, please feel free to join us during the week for a ride, in addition to including us in your weekend plans. We hope to see you soon! 🚋

05/25/2026

It was a beautiful day in Downtown Excelsior as many people stopped to admire & ride on Duluth Street Railway No. 265. Fun was had by all as they rode the rails in a historic streetcar built in 1915 and stopped at the carbarn to view the three additional streetcars at the Excelsior Streetcar Line.

Photo By: John Felix Mackey