The Inter-urban (Orem Line)
Remember When–March 20, 2008
Payson had its own “Spike Ceremony’ on completion of the Salt Lake and Utah Railroad, commonly known as the Inter-urban or Orem Line that ran between Salt Lake City and Payson, its southern terminal. The date of the spike ceremony was May26, 1916, when a celebration was held that noted the completion of the railroad and the finish of the Strawberry Irrigation Project. The railroad moved its shops to Payson in August of the same year.
The first train rolled into the depot located at 100 North and Main Street at 9:30 AM the morning of May 26, 1916. Aboard were about 300 people including railroad dignitaries from Salt Lake City and points south. The train was met by the Payson Silver Band and a large crown of local citizens. A large platform had been erected on Main Street near the end of the tracks by the station.
Mayor Thomas E. Reece gave the welcoming speech. Responses were given by several individual including W. C. Orem, financier of the line. The crown then moved to a designated place at track’s end where the ceremonial spike was driven by Mrs. George (Lavina) Done, Carnival Queen, and Miss Gladys Orem, the daughter of the financier of the line.
The track were laid adjacent to U. S. Highway 91 between Salem and Payson. They entered Payson at 100 North and 900 East at the city limits. A rather high grade had been constructed just east of the city and a “cut” was made through the hill from about 700 East to 500 East. It ran along the boundaries of the Peteetneet School, the railroad shops and then to the depot which faced north on 100 North, a quarter block east of Main Street. This would be approximately in the parking area between the current Daley Freeze and Crest Convenience Store.
The depot was of frame construction with a hip roof slanting east and west. It contained a waiting room, a news stand, ticket office, rest rooms and a large baggage room located at the rear of the ticket office. The freight platform was roofed but unwalled at the south end of the building.
At the peak of operation, twelve passenger trains and a freight train moved in and out of Payson every day. Passengers commuted to Provo, Salt Lake, and points in between every day. The line was said to be one of the finest inter-urban railroads in the United States at that time. It had been the brain-child of Boston financier, Walter C. Orem. Sometimes, becauseof this it was called the Orem line.
The line was constructed by a woman contractor, Mr. W. M. Smith. She supervised the construction of the line. You could see the woman’s touch in the plush interior that made some of the cars like a rolling palace. Two special cars, The “Utah County Limited” and the “Zion Limited” were furnished with palatial overstuffed furniture and deep carpeting.
For the general public, there were green plush seats that could be turned backward for the passengers to ride either forward or backward. Black rubber runners went down the center aisles.
Business on the Orem Inter-urban began to decline in the 1930's as the automobile and freight trucks took more and more of the trade from the line. Time also took its toll on the physical aspects of the line. The track became bulged and uneven in many areas. Passengers began joking about the “Leaping Lena.” It seemed to travel twice the distance scheduled in the additional up-and-down directions the passengers traveled.
There was an upturn in the business durin gWorld War II when gasoline became rationed and many started riding the train again for travel. However, at the end of the war, the tracks from Payson to Salt Lake City were removed. The station was razed and hauled away. The car barns were sold to Payson City and were used for a number of years for the city shops. They too soon met the fate of the rest of the Orem line. So today, the line is gone but not forgotten.*
*Summarized from “Peteetneet Town–A History of Payson, Utah by Madoline C. Dixon
pp 150-152
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