Pedal Through the Past III: Exploring Phoenix's Brill & Indian School Lines
- Jim McPherson
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
Phoenix’s streets once hummed with the familiar clatter of streetcars—the original “mass transit” that connected neighborhoods, schools, and downtown businesses long before freeways reshaped the city. On Saturday, November 22, 2025, you’re invited to step back into that era with Pedal Through the Past III, a guided bicycle tour tracing two of Phoenix’s historic streetcar routes: the Brill and Indian School lines.
Led by architect and Phoenix Trolley Museum Board President Bob Graham, this leisurely, 10-mile ride blends history, architecture, and community discovery. You’ll pedal through the Coronado neighborhood, past surviving buildings and landmarks that once echoed with the clang of streetcar bells, and all the way up to the site of the Phoenix Indian School, a central point in the city’s transit network.
Highlights Along the Route
As in past rides, Bob will bring to life the stories that lie just beneath our tires – tales of the people, places, and progress that defined early Phoenix. Among the notable stops is the infamous “Winnie Ruth Judd Murder House,” a site that continues to intrigue locals nearly a century later. Other stops will feature turn-of-the-century homes, neighborhood commercial buildings, and traces of the old tracks that once carried passengers between downtown and the growing edges of town.
Where History and Motion Meet
The tour starts and ends at the Phoenix Trolley Museum, where visitors can get an up-close look at restored streetcars and exhibits that showcase how streetcar lines shaped Phoenix’s development. The museum’s mission is to preserve and share the city’s transit heritage – from the days of mule-drawn cars to the electric streetcars that linked early neighborhoods like Brill, Capitol, and Indian School.
It’s a perfect pairing: pedaling modern bicycles while learning how the city once moved by rail. The event underscores how transportation – whether by trolley, bus, light rail, or bike –has always been at the heart of Phoenix’s story.
Event Details
Date: Saturday, November 22, 2025
Start/End: Phoenix Trolley Museum, 1117 Grand Avenue., Phoenix
Length: Approximately 10 miles, with plenty of stops (view scheduled route here)
Cost: Free (donations appreciated to help offset insurance costs)
Registration: Required – space is limited to 20 participants for safety reasons
Whether you’re a cycling enthusiast, a preservation advocate, or just someone curious about how Phoenix grew from a compact streetcar city into the sprawling metro we know today, this is a ride you won’t want to miss. Join us for Pedal Through the Past III – where every turn of the wheel brings another story from Phoenix’s vibrant history to life.
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