Urban Neighborhoods: Brentwood

[Metro Jacksonville]

Urban Neighborhoods: Brentwood



Metro Jacksonville explores the Metro North neighborhood known as Brentwood.

Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/article/2010-apr-urban-neighborhoods-brentwood

[civil42806]

Many fond memories of going to the childrens section upstairs in the Brentwood library back in the 60's as well as visiting the gateway mall.  There are definitly some unique homes in the area

[vicupstate]

I see there is an abandoned Fire Station, why hasn't it been torn down yet?  This is Jacksonville after all.

[James]

Kind of ironic that the old Brentwood golf course was sold to private interests to prevent integration, and now it is the home course to Raines, Ribault, Terry Parker, and Paxon High School's golf teams.  From all I've read, the First Tee seems like a good organization.  It's not kept up like a private course, but I've never seen it in bad shape, it's a great place to get out younger kids who are learning the game. 

[Sigma]

This area has so much going for it! Check out www.metronorthcdc.com

[MetroNorth]

This is a great article, it really details our neighborhood. If you like to be part of any activities led by Metro North and volunteer some of your time, just send me an email @ williamarce@bellsouth.net or visit www.metronorthcdc.com

[sheclown]

I love this neighborhood.  The houses are so charming. 

[finehoe]

^^ Me too!

[Ocklawaha]

There were actually 2 streetcar lines into Brentwood. (Originally The Jacksonville Street Railway - A Plant Company) The Brentwood Car Line, ran up Hogan Street (under the Skyway), to Hogan's Creek, where it turned west to Pearl, hence north into Brentwood. The passing track at the end of the line is easy to spot as the road widens at Hughes Restaurant.

The second line had it's root in a different railroad The Pine Street Railway (later The Main Street Railway).  Which originally ran from Bay Street, straight north into Springfield on Main to a dance pavilion.  The line was rather quickly extended up Main Street to 29Th and hence Northwest to the Fairgrounds. Today's 30Th Street and Woodbine, make up the current names for this route.

It's rather fun to be able to see the difference in construction between the two early streetcar companies. Woodbine Street, is rather narrow, it is remarkable because unlike all of the other neighborhood streets, it's easy to see it was once a railroad grade.  Not just any old railroad grade, but a streetcar line that was apparently built to steam railroad standards! The Pearl Street Line, followed a pattern much like the famous Jacksonville Trolley photos. From 8Th Street North, as well as in the jog from Hogan, it followed a manicured median, the track was over planted with lawn grasses and lush shrubs and Washingtonian Palms lined the sides.

National City Lines Conspiracy?  Pearl and Main were both rebuilt or extended with the garden right-of-way awaiting future development and railroad tracks. About 1927 the City got into a huge fight with the then Jacksonville Traction Company, over the subject of paving over the tracks for automobiles at the JTCO's expense, or forfit it's Charter. Of course also mixed into the battle were issues such as preventing the JTCO from raising it's fares to cover the additional costs. 

An offer came to town in the form of an offer from Colonial Stages, a maverick company that would someday grow into Greyhound. Ironically Colonial had a thinly hidden secret, it's young CEO was from the Colonial grocery chain family. Colonial would become Winn-Dixie, and Greyhound would "change hands" to become part of National City Lines, owned as it was by General Motors!

When the new Charter was finally issued, it was strongly worded to change the whole transit system from the "old, rough, streetcars," to modern flexible buses. When the Cities Jacksonville Traction Company was sold in bankruptcy to Motor Transit Company, the new corporation, part of a new outfit called National City Lines in 1932. In the coming years we would greatly benefit from this in Jacksonville. The City became the first of a new type (regional) distribution center for all of General Motors Products. Standard Oil would unload tanker ships in our port, and we gained the Southeastern Hub of Greyhound, all of which were owners of National City Lines. NCL likewise converted 70 streetcar lines to all buses.

Between then and now, National City Lines left town to destroy several other area Traction Companies, about 10 years after they left Jacksonville, they inked a "conversion deal" down in Tampa.  Blatantly the day after the the Tampa deal, every city councilmen was seen driving around downtown in brand new LaSalle (Cadillac Division)  Automobiles. When the power went down on the Tampa System, the last holdout in Florida surrendered to the bus,  though NCL never really got control. NCL would become an early test of the antitrust/monopoly laws, but by the time GM was done greasing the palms of the government, the directors were fined $1.00 each. Job well done.




OCKLAWAHA

[Sigma]

Thanks Ock!  Always nice reading your comments.