Ask Blake

After the city retired its Streetcar No. 453, the old car was stored at the training school located at the Napoleon Barn and was used to teach future streetcar conductors.

Photo by Eileen Loh Harrist

Hey Blake,

I read with interest your column on old car No. 453. I have a book on the New Orleans streetcars that has a picture of No. 453 with the caption that it was stored at the Napoleon Barn. Where is/was the Napoleon Barn? Is the Napoleon Barn still in use, and if so what do they use it for?

Stephen Quidd

Dear Stephen,

Don't you just wish we had more of those streetcars back on line? Sometimes, I get on the St. Charles car and ride the entire circuit just for the fun of it.

For a time, car No. 453 was stored in the Napoleon Barn after it was retired from the Desire Line. While it was there, the streetcar was used to train motormen.

The Napoleon Service and Material Yard can be found at the foot of Napoleon Avenue at Tchoupitoulas. As you head toward the river, pass Tipitina's on the left, and the last building before the fence is the one you're looking for. There is an old sign out front that states "Regional Transit Authority Training School." But it is no longer in use.

The yard dates from 1893 when the New Orleans & Carrollton Railroad built a power house on the site. When the Napoleon Line ended -- replaced by buses in February 1953 -- the yard was used to train bus drivers.

The Napoleon line itself began as a branch operation in February 1850 and was operated by the New Orleans & Carrollton Railroad Company. Electrified in 1893, the line merged with the New Orleans & Pontchartrain Railroad's Napoleon Line in 1906. The Napoleon Line was also known as the "Royal Blue Line" because the destination signs were of royal blue colored glass with white letters.

Over the years, the route was extended until it became one of the longest round-trip routes in New Orleans -- almost 17 miles. Its journey, which began at Napoleon and Tchoupitoulas, took a route that brought it into Jefferson Parish as far as Shrewsbury Road.

Cutting back of the "Royal Blue Line" began in December 1934 when service in Jefferson Parish was replaced with buses. The Napoleon Line continued to be shortened until the last of its blue lights was extinguished.

Hey Blake,

I'm looking for information on an ice cream parlor that my family and I used to frequent many years ago when I was a young boy. The name of this place was called Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor. I am greatly interested in finding out if the chain still exists, and, if so, is there still one in New Orleans?

Derek Sterling

Dear Derek,

You didn't tell Old Blake the years when you were a young lad eating ice cream at this fondly remembered establishment, so I'll have to make a few assumptions.

You may be thinking of Farrell's Ice Cream and Variety Shop at 3831 Clematis St. that was popular during the 1970s and 1980s. But since you remember the place as a chain, you must be referring to the Farrell's Restaurant and Ice Cream Parlor that opened about 1975 in the Plaza at Lake Forest. The restaurant, a fun place for families and a great place to celebrate your birthday, lasted for about 10 years.

Farrell's Old Fashioned Ice Cream Parlor Restaurant was created in 1963 by Bob Farrell and Ken McCarthy. They opened their first parlor in Portland, Ore., with the intention of recreating one of the most colorful and memorable periods in American history -- the 1890s. Customers could walk through the doors and step back in time, sit on bentwood chairs under Tiffany-style lamps, feast on yummy food and fantastic ice-cream creations while listening to old tunes on the player piano. And like the 1890s, there were singing waiters and waitresses dressed in the style of the period. Later, they even had a theme song -- "Farrell's is Fabulous Fun!"

Sometime in the 1970s, Farrell's was acquired by the Marriott Corporation, and the years brought many changes, mostly closings. But you may still be able to find a Farrell's in San Diego

Question for Blake? Email blresponse@gambitweekly.com or mail to 3923 Bienville St., 70119.

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