MBTA Green Line Branch (B Line) electric streetcar service begins

Operated by the West End Railway Company, the line runs from downtown Boston along Beacon Street to Coolidge Corner in Brookline, then along Harvard Street to Wilton Street in Allston. The first electric streetcar line in Boston (the first in the U.S. in Cleveland in 1884 [1885] [Baltimore 1855]), it becomes the oldest streetcar line in continuous operation (the first system began in Richmond, Virginia in 1888, but is no longer operating). By 1895, almost 95% of the streetcar lines in Boston are electrified. The lines are extended to Cleveland Circle on January 12, 1889, to Oak Square on January 13, 1889.