Era: 1893-late 1920s
Location: Main and Washington Streets, Morrice Road
In 1893, dozens of workers laid streetcar track at the corner of Main and Washington Streets—a transformative moment for Owosso.
The first steam-propelled streetcar line began operating between Owosso and Corunna around 1893.
Beginning in 1911, the same track was used for the Interurban—a 3-rail electric train system powered by an overhead line inside Owosso and a third rail outside the city. The route ran from Owosso to Jackson through Morrice, Perry, Shaftsburg, Bath, Haslett, and Lansing.
Another electric car line ran down Corunna Avenue into the late 1930s or 1940s. Families remember walking to school along Corunna Avenue to the old High School downtown, saving their nickels for the fare.
The Interurban and streetcars ended in the late 1920s as roads for automobiles expanded and ridership dwindled. But railways leave their marks—along Morrice Road, one can still find traces of metal rails beneath mounds of earth.
Additional memories shared by Janie Lynn Panagopoulos.