Descriptive Summary
Kight, John, d.
1989.
John Kight Transportation
Collection,
1878-1990
The materials are in English.
62.5 linear
feet (approximately 47,000 items)
MS 26
University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections
John Kight was
a long time employee and historian of successive transportation companies in
San Antonio. The records of VIA Metropolitan Transit, kept by Kight, include
material from the beginning of mass transit in San Antonio in 1878 to
1990.
The Kight
Transportation Collection documents the history of mass transportation in San
Antonio. The collection is divided into three series of records representing
the different types of material and the origins of that material: VIA Records,
Transportation, and Special Formats.
Preferred Citation
John Kight Transportation Collection Papers, 1878-1990, MS 26, University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
Biographical Note
John Kight was the company historian and custodian of the records of
VIA Metropolitan Transit (VIA). Beginning in 1926, he worked in the maintenance
shop for the various successive transportation companies in San Antonio. He
retired from the San Antonio Transit System in 1974 but maintained an active
interest in San Antonio's transportation history until his death in June 1989.
During his career and even after his retirement, Kight wrote extensively on
transportation history in company publications. The records of VIA, kept by
Kight, include material from predecessor transportation companies dating back
to the late 19th century; however, most date from 1920-1977. Using his skill as
a photographer, Kight also made a detailed visual record of San Antonio's
public transportation system in the 20th century.
VIA began operating one hundred years after mass transportation in San
Antonio began with cars being pulled along rails by mules in 1878. With a
population of 12, 256, San Antonio was then the largest city in Texas. Five
different companies began operating electric streetcar service in the 1890s.
The lack of standardization and cooperation between the companies caused
problems for people who needed to use more than one line. By 1900, the five
companies had been consolidated into the San Antonio Traction Company, a single
company responsible for all mass transportation in San Antonio. Between 1900
and when VIA began operating in March 1978, mass transportation in San Antonio
was run by a succession of separate companies. A brief chronology of the
different transit companies in San Antonio is listed after this note. Mass
transportation in San Antonio became publicly owned in 1959.
VIA, the first regional transit authority in the nation, and its
predecessor companies made many milestones in the history of mass
transportation. As advances in technology made improvements possible, San
Antonio would be among the first places where innovations were tried. For
example, bus service started in 1917 when a converted truck was used to
transport servicemen between Fort Sam Houston and downtown. Buses became more
and more common in San Antonio throughout the 1920's. Touring buses for
sightseers began in 1930. San Antonio was the largest city in the United States
to completely convert from streetcars to buses in 1933. Fifty years later
rubber tired reproductions of streetcars were put into service on downtown
streets by VIA. San Antonio was also the first city in the world to offer air
conditioned bus service in 1947. In addition, the maintenance department of the
San Antonio Transit System redesigned the air conditioners of the Diesel
powered "Dreamliner" buses that arrived in 1960. General Motors adopted the San
Antonio design for all Dreamliners. San Antonio was also one of the first
cities to use an automatic vehicle monitoring system to pinpoint the location
of buses on routes.
Mr. Kight also kept the papers of F. Norman "Pinky" Hill. Mr. Hill was
the General Manager of the San Antonio Transit System from 1959 to 1977 and an
officer of the American Transit Association (ATA) serving as president in
1967-1968. Prior to his arrival in San Antonio, Mr. Hill held positions with
the St. Joseph [Missouri] Railway, Light, Heat and Power Company (1942-1945),
National City Lines in St. Louis (1945-1948) and the Baltimore Transit Company
(1948-1951). He was also president of the Capitol Transit Company (1951-1955)
and Red Arrow Freight Lines (1955-1959) both in Little Rock, Arkansas.
San Antonio Public Transportation
Timeline
Timeline of Mass Transportation Companies in San Antonio
1878
San Antonio Street Railway Company begins operating between
downtown and San Pedro Springs. Cars were pulled along tracks by mules and
horses
1889
San Antonio Edison Company formed to create and power an
electric railway system.
Sept. 1890
First electric streetcar operated by San Antonio Edison
Company (Hot Wells line).
1890
San Antonio Street Railway Company replaces the mules with
electric streetcars. Alamo Electric Railway Company formed. Rapid Transit
Company formed. A 5th company ran a line to West End Lake.
1898-1900
All five companies which run streetcars in San Antonio merge
and form the San Antonio Traction Company.
1917
San Antonio Traction Company merges with San Antonio Gas and
Electric Company and becomes the Traction Department of the San Antonio Public
Service Company.
1931
Traction Department renamed Transportation Department.
1941-1942
Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority tries to purchase San Antonio
Public Service Company.
Oct. 1942
San Antonio City Commissioners buy San Antonio Public Service
Company and create City Public Service Board.
Dec. 1942
Transportation Department of City Public Service Board sold to
Smith, Young, Tower Corporation, which forms the San Antonio Transit
Company.
May 1959
City of San Antonio purchases San Antonio Transit Company. The
San Antonio Transit System is formed.
Mar. 1978
Following voter approval, the San Antonio Transit System is
dissolved and the county wide VIA Metropolitan Transit begins
operations
Scope and Content Note
The Kight Transportation Collection consists of materials dating from
1878 to 1990, which document the history of mass transportation in San Antonio.
The collection is divided into three series of records representing the
different types of material and the origins of that material. The series are
VIA Records, Transportation, and Special Formats.
The VIA Records series contains the Records of VIA Metropolitan
Transit (VIA) and is composed of ten subseries. It documents local
transportation issues in San Antonio and Bexar County. The documents reveal
much of the history of transportation in San Antonio and how a large company
and agency functioned in San Antonio in the 20th century.
The day to day operations and the flow of communication in the
transportation companies are well documented in the correspondence, the Board
of Trustees, and the office files subseries. These records show many of the
issues with which the transportation companies had to be concerned and how
those concerns changed over time.
The ties that the transportation companies had with the San Antonio
community are recorded in the local associations subseries as well as the legal
and contracts subseries. These documents help to illustrate how various groups
in the area viewed mass transportation. The ties that the transportation
companies in San Antonio had with transportation companies in other cities is
well documented, as are the ties with the manufacturers of buses.
The transportation companies also worked hard to establish a positive
image in San Antonio. The VIA publications subseries contains material designed
to promote the companies, both to their employees and the San Antonio
community. The public image of the transportation companies in San Antonio is
also documented in clippings and awards.
The Transportation series focuses on transportation issues that
concern more than San Antonio and Bexar County. A large number of national
transportation periodicals and information about professional associations
provide insight into national and international transportation issues. The
papers of F. Norman Hill are also in this series.
F. Norman Hill's papers are useful to compare the operations of San
Antonio Transportation System with the other companies with which Hill worked.
His leadership role in the American Transit Association (ATA) makes his papers
a valuable resource to study how the leaders of the transportation industry
reacted to the challenges of the 1960s. A number of regional and national
groups concern themselves with mass transportation. Some of these groups are
documented in transportation associations. The American Transit Association,
the largest professional association of the transit industry, is further
documented in American Transit Association meetings and publications. VIA and
its predecessors kept a large reference library of national transportation
publications providing another avenue in which local authorities could consult
national experience and expertise.
The Special Formats series contains non textual records and is divided
into three subseries. This arrangement of photographs, negatives and other
formats provide a detailed visual record of the history of mass transportation
in San Antonio spanning over a century. The growth of the city and the bus
system can be examined using this material. This series illustrates the
information in the other series, but it is also a rich historical resource by
itself.
Journals and serial publications have been separated from the collection and are maintained in the JPL Special Collections reading room. They can be found by searching the UTSA Catalog for "John Kight Transportation Manuscript Collection."
Arrangement
The collection is arranged as follows:
- VIA Records
- Transportation
- Special Formats
Separated MaterialJournals and serial publications have been separated from the collection and are maintained in the JPL Special Collections reading room. They can be found by searching the UTSA Catalog for "John Kight Transportation Manuscript Collection."
- 1933 supplement to the engineering manual / American Transit Engineering Association [Call Number: TF701 .A653 Suppl. 1933]
- The Accelerator, vol. 1; vol. 3-15 [Call Number: HE5634.S36 A23]
- Lubrication, vol.43-59 [Call Number: TJ1075.A2 L8]
- Proceedings of the American Electric Railway Engineering Association, 1932 [Call Number: TF701 .A65]
- Proceedings of the American Street and Interurban Railway Engineering Association, 1908-1910 [Call Number: TF701 .A65]
- Report of the Twenty-Fourth Annual Meeting of the American Street Railway Association Held at the Philadelphia Museum Philadelphia, PA. September 27-28, 1905 [Call Number: TF701 .A6]
Acquisition Information
Records were donated in 1994 by Douglas A. Peck of VIA Metropolitan
Transit (Acc. 1994-04).
Processing Information
Processed by Eric Hartmann in November 1998.
Access Restrictions
This collection is housed at UTSA's Main Campus and must be accessed via the John Peace Library Special Collections reading room. To request access, please use the Collections Request Form.
Usage Restrictions
Permission to publish material from the collection must be obtained
from University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.
Index Terms
Persons
Kight, John, d.
1989.
Hill, F.
Norman.
Organizations
Alamo Area Council of
Governments.
American Electric Railway
Association.
American Street and
Interurban Railway Association.
American Transit
Association.
Baltimore Transit
Company.
Capital Transportation
Company (Little Rock, Ark.)
City Public Service (San
Antonio, Tex.)
Good Government League
(San Antonio, Tex.)
Greater San Antonio
Chamber of Commerce.
HemisFair '68 (1968: San
Antonio, Tex.)
National City Lines (St.
Louis, Mo.)
San Antonio Public
Service Company.
San Antonio Public
Service Company. Traction Dept.
San Antonio Public
Service Company. Transportation Dept.
San Antonio Traction
Company.
San Antonio Transit
System.
San Antonio
Transportation System.
Texas Transportation
Museum (San Antonio, Tex.)
VIA Metropolitan
Transit.
Topics:
Buses--Texas--San
Antonio--History.
Electric
railroads--Texas--San Antonio--Cars.
Local transit--Texas--San
Antonio--History.
Transportation--Texas--San
Antonio
Transportation--Texas--San
Antonio--History.
Urban
transportation--Texas--San Antonio--History.
Locations
San Antonio
(Tex.)
Genres/formats
Clippings.
Correspondence.
Journals
(periodicals).
Legal
documents.
Long-playing
records.
Minutes.
Negatives
(photographic).
Newsletters.
Photographs.
Postcards.
Slides
(photographs).
Videotapes.
Detailed Description of the Collection
VIA Records
Correspondence
Bound volumes of correspondence of the San Antonio Traction
Company, The Traction and the Transportation Departments of the San Antonio
Public Service Company, and the San Antonio Transportation Company. Most of the
letters are written between company officials and concern the day to day
operation of the company.
Arranged chronologically.
OM1
San Antonio Traction Company
OM1
1
Oversize:
1910
OM1
2
Oversize:
1912-1914
OM4
Oversize:
1916-1922
OM1
San Antonio Public Service Company
OM1
3
Oversize:
September 1919-May 1920
OM1
4
Oversize:
May 1920-November 1920
OM2
1
Oversize:
November 1920-June 1921
OM2
2
Oversize:
June 1921-June 1922
OM2
3
Oversize:
June 1922-March 1923
OM2
4
Oversize:
March 1923-August 1923
83
August 1923-June 1924
84
November 1924-February 1925
84
June 1925-February 1926
85
February 1926-November 1926
86
November 1926-September 1927
87
September 1927-July 1928
88
August 1928-July 1929
89
July 1929-July 1930
90
July 1930-September 1931
91
September 1931-October 1932
92
October 1932-September 1933
93
September 1933-August 1934
94
August 1934-July 1935
95
July 1935-July 1936
96
June 1936-July 1937
97
July 1937-September 1938
98
September 1938-September
1939
99
September 1939-September
1940
100
September 1940-September
1941
101
September 1941-August 1942
102
San Antonio Transit Company
102
December 1942-February 1944
103
February 1944-January 1945
104
January 1945-March 1946
105
March 1946-May 1947
106
May 1947- December 1948
107
January 1949-June 1950
108
July 1950-December 1951
109
January 1952-December 1953
110
January 1954-December 1955
111
January 1956-December 1957
Board of Trustees
The minutes of meetings of the board that oversaw public transit
in San Antonio. The minutes run uninterrupted between 1959-1977. The minutes
often contain clippings, reports and appendices, which board members consulted
during the meetings. There is also a small group of minutes from the VIA Board
of Trustees in 1984.
Arranged chronologically.
1
Minutes
1
1
May 1959-July 1960
1
2
August 1960-July 1961
1
3
August 1961-July 1962
1
4
August 1962-July 1963
2
1
August 1963-July 1964
2
2
January 1965-July 1965
2
3
August 1965-December 1965
2
4
January 1966-March 1966
2
5
April 1966-July 1966
2
6
August 1966-December 1966
3
1
January 1967-March 1967
3
2
April 1967-July 1967
3
3
August-December 1967
3
4
January-March 1968
3
5
April 1968-July 1968
3
6
August 1968-December 1968
3
7
January-March 1969
3
8
April 1969-July 1969
4
1
August 1969- December 1969
4
2
January 1970-April 1970
4
3
May 1970-July 1970
4
4
August 1970-December 1970
4
5
January 1971-March 1971
5
1
April 1971- July 1971
5
2
August 1971-January 1972
5
3
February 1972-April 1972
5
4
May 1972-July 1972
6
1
August 1972- October 1972
6
2
November 1972-January 1973
6
3
February 1973-April 1973
6
4
May 1973
7
1
June 1973-July 1973
7
2
August 1973-October 1973
7
3
November 1973-January 1974
7
4
February 1974-April 1974
8
1
May 1974-July 1974
8
2
August 1974-January 1975
8
3
February-April 1975
8
4
May-July 1975
9
1
August 1975-September 1975
9
2
October 1975-January 1976
9
3
February 1976-July 1976
9
4
August 1976-September 1976
10
1
October 1976-January 1977
10
2
February 1977-May 1977
10
3
1983-1984
10
4
City Clerk,
1959-1967
Office Files
Material such as correspondence, reports and other reference
information concerning issues and concerns of the transportation companies.
Most of the information was produced by the different departments and groups
within the San Antonio Transit System (1959-1977). This material includes a
great deal of the professional correspondence of F. Norman Hill while he was
General Manager. Other materials relating to Mr. Hill are kept in the Hill
series of the Transportation series (TS1).
Arranged alphabetically and organized by topic.
11
Administration Building
11
1
1947
11
2
1948-1968
11
3
1951-1962
11
4
1963-1969
12
1
Alamo Guided Tours,
1965-1969
12
2
Automobiles,
1959-1968
12
3
Bids,
1964
12
4
Consultants,
1962-1970
12
Correspondence
12
5
Commendations,
1971-1973
12
6
Complaints,
1971-1973
12
Inquiries
12
7
1961-1964
12
8
1965-1971
12
9
1965-1970
13
1
1972-1978
13
2
Marketing,
1960-1965
13
3
Equipment,
1960-1962
13
4
Extensions,
1965
13
5
Furniture,
undated
13
Gray Line
13
6
Bylaws and Membership,
1959-1967
13
Correspondence
13
7
1961-1964
14
1
1965-1972
14
HemisFair
14
2
1963-1964
14
3
1965-1966
14
4
1967-1968
14
History
14
5
General,
1904-1968 and undated
15
1
Nostalgia,
1974-1982 and undated
15
Inspection and Surveys
15
2
1905-1907
15
3
1909
15
4
1909-1910
16
1
1910
16
2
1911
16
3
1911
17
1
1912-1938
17
Inventory
17
2
Fares, undated
17
3
Price list, undated
17
4
Routes, undated
17
5
Routes, undated
17
6
Schedules, undated
17
7
Volume One, undated
18
1
Volume Two, undated
18
2
Kight, John,
1956-1981
18
Maps
18
City
18
3
Undated
18
4
1948-1976
18
5
Geographic,
1949
18
6
Romana Plaza,
1940-1968
18
Transit
18
7
Undated
18
8
[1920]-1957
18
9
1958-1986
OM3
Oversize materials,
undated
19
Miscellaneous
19
1
Undated
19
2
1946-1971
19
Personnel
19
3
Benefits,
1965-1966
19
4
Group Records,
1961
19
5
Insurance,
1956-1961
19
6
Miscellaneous,
1937-1983
20
1
Retirees,
1950-1977
20
2
Seniority List,
1966-1968
20
3
Vacation, undated
20
4
Retirement Plan,
1973
20
Public Relations
20
5
1970 and undated
20
6
1982-1990
20
7
Purchase of San Antonio Transportation Company,
1964
20
Rates
20
8
Fare Application,
1961
20
Senior Citizens
20
Chicago
20
9
General,
1970
20
10
Study,
1970
21
1
Clippings,
1970-1974
21
2
Correspondence,
1969-1974
21
3
Dallas,
1971-1972
21
4
Miscellaneous,
1968-1970 and undated
21
Plan for Implementation
21
5
1972
21
6
1972-1975
21
Senior Citizen Study
21
7
1969-1970
22
1
1969-1970
22
2
1969-1970
22
3
Various Cities,
1970 and undated
22
4
Students
1960-1974
23
Reports
23
1
Annual,
1948-1971
23
2
Budget,
1966
23
3
Carpenter Body Works,
1983
23
4
Bus Service in the Greater Northwest,
1985
23
5
Mass Transit,
1966
23
6
NIACD Report,
1965
23
Passenger loads
23
7
1929-1936
24
1
1936-1938
24
2
Request for Transit Communications System,
1983
24
3
Route Analysis Procedures,
1986
24
4
San Antonio Urban Design Mechanism Study,
1972
24
5
Service Station,
1946
24
6
Summary of Operating Results,
1960-1982
24
7
System Cost Analysis Evaluation Form,
undated
24
8
Skillcraft Industries Incorporated,
1983
24
9
Tri Party Downtown Transportation Initiative,
1984
25
Urban Transportation Study
25
1
1964-1969
25
2
1970
25
Schedules
25
Pocket
25
3
1946-1965
25
4
1968-1969
25
5
1970-1974
25
6
1975-1977
26
1
1978
26
2
1979-1980
26
3
1981
26
4
1982
26
5
1983-1984
26
6
1985-1986
27
1
1987
27
2
1988-1989
27
3
1990
OM3
2
Oversize materials,
1979-1981
27
4
Texas Transportation Museum,
1964-1974
27
Traffic
27
5
Bus lane,
1959-1964
27
6
Bus Stops,
1962-1968
28
1
Capacity of Urban Transit Models,
1962
28
2
Expressway,
1963-1971
28
3
Mall Studies,
1965-1970
28
4
Parking,
1959
28
5
Pedestrian,
1964-1966
28
6
Validation Plan,
1962-1963
Clippings
News Clippings and editorials from the
San Antonio Express News and the
San Antonio Light about
transportation in San Antonio.
28
Editorials
28
7
1964-1967
28
8
1968-1972
28
9
General,
1952-1972
29
1
Good Government League,
1960-1972
Legal and
Contracts
This subseries contains documents and legal concerns such as
local, state and federal regulation of public transportation. Information about
labor contracts is also in this subseries. There are also contracts between the
San Antonio public transportation companies and other entities. Contracts
concerned matters such as providing supplies to the bus system and providing
bus service to schools and military bases.
Arranged by type of document and organized chronologically.
29
Contracts
29
2
Advertising
29
3
Alamo Heights,
1949-1959
29
4
Armored Motor Service,
1942-1950
29
4
City Armored Service,
1960-1969
29
5
City Public Service Board,
1942-1951
29
6
Comptroller of Public Accounts,
1950-1958
29
Fort Sam Houston
29
7
School Bus Service,
1964-1967
29
8
Transportation License
29
9
1944-1958
29
10
1959-1962
29
11
Fuels and Lubricants,
1956-1959
30
1
Goodrich Tire,
1944-1958
30
2
Granada Hotel,
1954-1961
30
3
Gulf Oil,
1946-1969
30
4
Industrial Cleaning,
1947-1956
30
5
Kelly Air Force Base,
1947-1968
30
6
Lackland Air Force Base,
1944-1958
30
7
Lawn Maintenance,
1948-1958
30
8
Miscellaneous,
1942-1969
30
9
Mobile Oil,
1964-1967
30
10
San Antonio Independent School District,
1940-1955
30
11
Southwestern Bell,
1958
30
12
Texaco,
1960-1967
30
13
Texas Company,
1944-1959
30
14
Transit Tower,
1943-1958
30
15
Tulahoma Gas Company,
1954-1961
31
1
United States Post Office,
1942-1958
31
2
Vending Machine,
1946-1963
31
Federal
31
3
Fair Labor Standards Act,
1964-1966
31
4
Miscellaneous,
1961-1966
31
5
Urban Mass Transit Act,
1964
31
Ordinances
31
6
1921-1941
31
7
1947-1970
31
State
31
Buses
31
8
School Bus Regulation,
1962-1965
31
9
Size of Buses,
1959
31
10
Legislature,
1969
32
1
Miscellaneous,
1963-1969
32
2
National Legislative Conference,
1967
32
3
Roster,
1956-1970
32
Taxes
32
4
Miscellaneous,
1949-1962
32
5
Motor Fuel,
1949-1965
32
6
Private versus Municipal,
1960-1970
32
7
Trial de Nova,
1962
32
Labor
32
8
Agreements,
1916-1950
33
Compulsory Arbitration
33
1
1957-1961
33
2
1961-1967
33
Pay board
33
3
1971-1972
33
4
1971-1972
33
5
Reports,
1971
34
1
United States Department of Labor,
1958-1964
34
Wages
34
2
Data,
1958-1970
34
3
Discussion,
1969
34
4
General,
1969-1970
34
5
Survey,
1969-1970
Local
Associations
Contains information about the contact between groups in south
Texas like the Alamo Area Council of Governments and the San Antonio River
Authority and the transportation companies. These contacts mostly concerned the
role of public transportation in San Antonio.
Arranged by association name and organized chronologically.
34
Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG)
34
Executive Committee
34
6
1969
34
7
1970
35
1
1971
35
2
1972-1973
35
3
General,
1970-1972
35
4
Archdiocese of San Antonio,
1965-1966
35
5
City Public Service
35
6
Downtown Association
35
Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce
35
7
Armed Forces Committee,
1965-1971
36
1
General,
1968-1971
36
Highway and Public Works
36
2
1966-1967
36
3
1968-1971
36
4
Urban Improvement,
1961-1966
36
5
Miscellaneous,
1956-1970
36
6
Municipal Advisory Council,
1960-1967
36
7
Oozlfinch Fort Sam Houston,
1961-1962
37
1
Research and Planning Council,
1962-1963
37
2
San Antonio Athletic Club,
1967-1970
37
San Antonio City Government
37
General
37
3
1959-1966
37
4
1970-1973
37
5
Model Cities Program,
1968
37
6
Regional Planning,
1966
37
7
Traffic Coordinating Committee,
1968
37
San Antonio River Authority
37
General
37
8
1970
38
1
1971-1973
38
2
River Corridor Study,
1973
38
3
Southwest Foundations,
1967-1968
38
4
Southwest Research Institute,
1965-1968
Buses
This subseries includes registrations and insurance information
as well other material from the companies' maintenance departments in which
John Kight worked for over forty years. Some information about the routes
traveled by the buses is in this subseries including a sample of bus transfers.
This subseries also provides a detailed look at some of the equipment used by
the transportation companies in San Antonio.
Arranged by topic and organized alphabetically.
38
5
Air Conditioning,
1960-1961
38
6
Automatic Vehicle Monitoring,
1981-1983
38
7
Bids,
1964
38
Certificates
38
8
1960-1966
39
1
1967-1985
39
Communications,
39
2
1982
39
3
1983
39
4
1983
39
Correspondence
39
5
1930-1948
39
6
1957-1960
39
7
1960-1967
39
8
Disposal of Buses,
1961-1969
39
9
Dreamliner,
1960
40
1
Exhaust Pipes,
1969
40
Fuel
40
2
1961-1963
40
3
1964-1966
40
GMC
40
Advertisements
40
4
1963-1968 and undated
40
5
1968-1970 and undated
40
6
Correspondence,
1961-1962
40
Insurance
40
General
40
7
Undated
40
8
1966-1972
40
9
Safety Survey,
1970
40
10
List of Buses,
1959-1967
40
11
Mack Bus,
1961
40
12
Maintenance,
1972-1973
41
1
Mileage,
1932
41
2
Miscellaneous,
undated
41
3
Owner's Manual,
1948-1971 and undated
41
4
Propane,
1956-1970
41
5
Radio,
1979
41
6
Replacement Program,
1961-1965
41
Reports
41
7
Blue Bird Body Company,
1983
41
8
Carpenter,
1970 and undated
42
1
Neoplan Bus,
1983
42
2
Ontario Bus,
1983
42
Specifications
42
3
1964
42
4
1965-1967
42
5
1969-1971
42
6
Seats,
1967
42
7
Signs,
1961-1964
42
8
Streetcars,
1932-1982
43
1
Tires,
1961-1963
43
Transfers and Passes
43
Passes
43
2
1939-1944
43
3
1945-1948
43
4
1978
43
Transfers
43
5
Books,
1926-1987
43
6
Correspondence,
1945
43
7
Route changes, undated
43
8
General, undated
44
1
Upholstery,
1961-1968
44
United States Department of Transportation
44
2
1962-1977
44
3
1979
44
4
1981-1982
Awards
This material concerns the Fleet Magazine Maintenance efficiency
award, which was won by the transportation system in San Antonio for 45
consecutive years. This subseries includes reports submitted to Fleet. These
reports summarized the year's maintenance activities so that San Antonio could
be considered for the award. There is also information on awards won by SATS
and VIA.
Arranged by award name and organized chronologically.
44
Charles A. Coffin Medal
44
5
1927
44
6
1927-1928
44
7
1927-1929
44
Maintenance Efficiency
44
8
1936-1937
45
1
1937-1938
45
2
1938-1939
45
3
1939-1940
45
4
1940-1941
45
5
1941-1942
46
1
1942-1943
46
2
1943-1944
46
3
1944-1945
46
4
1945-1946
46
5
1946-1947
46
6
1947-1948
46
7
1948-1949
46
8
1949-1950
46
9
1950-1951
46
10
1951-1952
47
1
1952-1953
47
2
1953-1954
47
3
1954-1955
47
4
1955-1956
47
5
1956-1957
47
6
1957-1958
47
7
1958-1959
48
1
1959-1960
48
2
1960-1961
48
3
1961-1962
48
4
1962-1963
48
5
1963-1964
48
6
1964-1965
48
7
1966
48
8
1967-1973
OM3
3
Oversize materials,
1949-1951
48
9
Commendations,
1964-1970
VIA Publications
This subseries contains journals and newsletters published by
the bus company. Some of these publications were for employees and others were
for customers. Several articles by John Kight are within these
publications.
Arranged by publisher and title and organized chronologically.
48
10
San Antonio Traction Company,
1903-1910
48
San Antonio Public Service Company
48
11
The Broadcaster,
1927-1932
49
General
49
1
1923-1938
49
2
1938-1946
49
3
Manuals,
1923-1929
49
4
Records of Constructing and Changing of Routes,
undated
49
5
City Public Service, The Broadcaster,
1968-1982
50
2
San Antonio Transit Company Manuals,
1944-1954
50
San Antonio Transit System
50
3
Manuals,
1962-1974
50
Roadrunner
50
4
1961-1964
50
5
1970-1976
OM5
1
Oversize: Accelerator and
Roadrunner clippings,
1956-1969
50
VIA Metropolitan Transit
50
6
Buster the Bus Book, undated
50
7
Rider Reader,
1981-1988
50
VIA Roadrunner
50
8
1981-1984
50
9
1985-1988
50
10
1988-1990
50
11
Voz del Barrio,
1968
Other Cities
This subseries contains some correspondence with officials in
other bus systems and reference information. A large number of labor contracts
can be found here.
Arranged by city and organized chronologically.
51
1
Cincinnati,
1964-1972
51
Dallas
51
Clippings
51
2
1955-1972
51
3
1973-1974
51
General
51
4
1946-1964
51
5
1969-1972
51
6
1973-1974
51
7
Fort Worth,
1950-1969
51
8
Houston,
1940-1985
51
9
Laredo,
1969-1976
51
10
Louisville,
1954-1964
52
1
Memphis,
1963-1964
52
2
Miscellaneous,
1941-1972
52
3
San Francisco,
1966
52
4
St. Louis,
1948-1964
52
5
Twin Cities,
1956-1964
52
6
Washington D.C.,
1961-1963
52
Labor Contracts
52
7
Undated
52
8
1953-1960
52
9
1964-1973
52
10
1974-1975
Transportation
Hill, F. Norman
The personal papers of F. Norman "Pinky" Hill, longtime General
Manager of the San Antonio Transportation System and President of the American
Transit Association. Material in this subseries contains information about his
jobs prior to arriving in San Antonio and some personal correspondence. His
activities with the San Antonio Transportation system are documented in Office
files (VS3) and other subseries in the VIA series. Records of Mr. Hill's
activities with the American Transit Associations and other professional
organizations are kept in the Transport Associations subseries (TS3).
Arranged by topic and organized chronologically.
53
Correspondence
53
1
1945
53
2
1946
53
3
1947
53
4
1948-1949
53
5
1950
53
6
January-August 1962
53
7
September-December 1962
53
8
1963
54
1
1971
54
2
1972
54
3
1973
54
Baltimore Transit Company
54
Arbitration
54
4
1945
54
5
1945
55
1
Baltimore Engineer,
1950
55
Bulletins
55
2
1950
55
3
1950
55
4
Contract,
1950
55
5
Fares,
1950
55
General
55
6
1949
55
7
1949-1950
56
1
1950
56
Manuals
56
2
Coach Operation, undated
56
3
Fire,
1952
56
4
Parking,
1949
56
Preventive Maintenance
56
5
1949
56
6
1950
56
7
Operating Department,
1948
56
8
Parts Inventory,
1950
57
1
Personnel,
1949-1950
57
2
Real Estate, undated
57
3
Statistics,
1948-1950
57
4
Supervisory, undated
57
5
Tire Contract,
1949-1950
57
6
Capitol Transportation Company,
1950 and undated
57
National City Lines
57
7
Beaumont City Lines,
1944-1946
57
8
Contract Data,
1947 and undated
57
9
East St. Louis,
1952
58
1
Financial,
1945-1947
58
2
Forms, undated
58
General
58
3
1945-1946
58
4
1947-1948
58
5
1949-1951
58
Manuals
58
6
1500 Mile Inspection,
1947
58
7
3000 Mile Inspection, undated
58
8
15000 Mile Inspection, undated
59
1
Management,
1947
59
2
Montgomery,
1946-1948
59
3
St. Louis,
1950
59
4
St. Louis Public Service Company,
1949
59
5
Statistics,
1946
59
6
Tulsa,
1948
59
7
Scouting,
1954-1955
59
University of Colorado
59
Development
59
8
1965-1966
60
1
1967
60
2
General,
1961-1970
Transportation
Associations
Correspondence and other communication with regional, national
and international transportation groups. This includes material from F. Norman
Hill when he was an officer of the ATA. Communications with groups and
associations in the San Antonio area, most of which concern bus service in the
city, are documented in the Local Associations subseries (VS6).
Arranged by association name and publisher and organized
chronologically.
61
American Transit Association
61
1
Awards,
1965-1969
61
2
Annual Reports,
1959-1967
61
Board of Directors
61
3
Correspondence,
1961-1967
61
4
Minutes,
1962-1967
61
Meetings
61
5
Las Vegas,
1967
61
6
Washington D.C.
61
7
Membership,
1960-1967
61
Committees
61
8
Administrative,
1967
62
1
Advertising Revenue,
1961-1964
62
2
Bus Design,
1952-1958
62
3
Clean Air,
1961-1966
62
4
Clerical,
1960-1967
62
Executive
62
5
1960-1967
63
1
1968
63
2
1968
63
3
1969
63
4
Executive and Finance,
1969
63
5
Finance and Special Dues,
1969-1970
63
6
Highway Capacity,
1960-1962
63
7
Labor Relations,
1962-1968
63
8
Law,
1959-1960
64
1
Nominations,
1959-1969
64
2
Program,
1960-1968
64
3
Purchase and Stores,
1958-1969
64
4
Tax Advisory,
1953-1962
64
5
Urban Transit Radio,
1953-1968
64
Conventions
64
6
1967
64
1968
64
7
General
65
1
General
65
2
Program
65
3
1969-1970
65
4
1970
65
5
Midyear,
1968-1969
66
1
Western Regional,
1967-1969
66
Correspondence
66
2
Director
66
3
General,
1968-1969
66
4
Directories,
1936-1970
66
5
Fares,
1961-1969
66
Manuals
66
6
The Case Interview Plan,
1949
67
1
Transit Fact Book,
1944-1960
67
Labor Relations
67
2
Case Interview System,
1953
67
3
Consumer Price Index,
1958-1964
67
4
Labor Practices Report,
1956-1969
67
5
Wages,
1965-1972
67
Legislation
67
6
Transit Housing Act,
1962-1964
67
7
Urban Transportation Act,
1964-1969
68
1
Municipal Ownership,
1958-1963
68
2
Papers Presented,
1955-1959
68
3
Philadelphia Transit Authority,
1959-1969
68
4
Press Releases,
1959-1969
68
Special Inquiry Services
68
5
Correspondence,
1970-1972
68
Questionnaires
68
6
1955-1963
69
1
1964-1967
69
2
1968-1969
69
Statistics
69
3
General,
1964-1965
69
4
Operating Ratio,
1959-1960
69
5
Tires,
1960-1967
70
1
Transit Traffic,
1970-1972
70
2
Air Pollution Conference,
1966
70
3
Automotive Safety Foundation,
1967
70
4
Canadian Transit Association,
1968
70
5
Electric Railroad Association,
1969-1971
70
International Conference
70
6
1967-1968
70
7
1968-1969
71
1
Miscellaneous,
1961-1967
71
Midwest Transit Association
71
2
1951-1952
71
3
1953
71
4
1954
71
5
1954
72
1
National Research Council,
72
2
NDTA,
1968
72
3
Regional Transit Association,
1975
72
4
Texas Transit Association,
1961-1968
72
Texas Transportation Institute
72
5
1961-1965
72
6
1966-1968
72
7
Texas Manufacturing Association,
1963-1970
73
1
Transit Data Summaries,
1970-1972
Transportation
Publications
National Transportation journals kept as reference material by
VIA.
Arranged by publication name and organized chronologically.
73
2
Bus Ride,
1968
73
3
Collector's Item,
1981-1982
73
4
Electric Railway Journal,
1929
73
8
Labor Track Work,
1930
73
9
Metro Magazine,
1990
74
1
Miscellaneous,
1925-1969
74
3
San Antonio Tourism Publications,
1965-1972
74
4
The Texas ERA,
1962
74
5
Traffic Engineering,
1962
74
6
Traffic Quarterly,
1958-1968
74
United States Department of Transportation
74
7
Department of Transportation News,
1972
74
8
Innovation in Public Transportation,
1981
Special Formats
Photographs
Over 3000 prints, most taken by John Kight, Many of the
photographs were taken to provide publicity shots and visual records for the
company. Others were taken for personal reasons. The maintenance department in
which Kight worked is especially well documented. Many of the prints have
negatives in the negatives subseries (SFS2).
Arranged by subject in photograph and organized
chronologically.
74
VIA
74
Buses
74
9
Gray line,
1935-1970 and undated
74
10
Interior
74
Routes
74
Bus 600
74
11
Undated
75
1
Undated
75
2
General,
1971-1979 and undated
75
3
Traffic Guide,
undated
75
General
75
4
Undated
75
5
1925-1975
75
Garage
75
Buses
75
6
Undated
75
7
1936-1975
75
8
Cars,
1927-1980 and undated
75
Construction Equipment
75
9
Undated
75
10
1941-1963
75
11
1964-1978
75
12
Emergency Vehicles,
1962-1975
76
Equipment
76
1
Undated
76
2
1927-1957
76
3
1958-1962
76
4
1963-1975
76
Trucks
76
5
Undated
76
6
1955-1957
76
7
1958
76
8
1959-1962
76
9
1962-1975
76
Individuals
76
10
Construction,
1957-1964 and undated
76
11
Drivers,
1953-1967 and undated
76
Mechanics
76
Inside Garage
76
12
Undated
76
13
1936-1957
76
14
1958-1960
77
1
1961-1965
77
2
1966-1973
77
3
Outside Garage,
1929-1975 and undated
77
4
Office Workers,
1911-1970 and undated
OM6
Oversize: Personnel
Photographs , undated
Photographs are arranged alphabetically by name
77
Portraits
77
5
A-K,
1901-1969 and undated
77
6
L-Z,
1928-1967 and undated
77
Unidentified
77
7
Undated
77
8
1930-1990
77
Groups
77
9
Boarding Buses,
1957-1967 and undated
77
10
General,
1943-1970 and undated
77
11
Mechanics,
1902-1977 and undated
77
12
Officials,
1903-1971 and undated
77
Unidentified
77
13
Undated
77
14
1927-1972
78
Properties
78
1
Construction,
1927-1973 and undated
78
2
Garage,
1933-1975 and undated
78
3
General,
1957-1979 and undated
78
4
Interior,
1956-1970 and undated
78
5
Stops,
1971-1980 and undated
78
6
Transportation Building,
1956-1969 and undated
78
7
Yard,
1927-1955
78
Presentations and Awards
78
8
Awards,
1944-1974 and undated
78
9
Presentations,
1958-1981 and undated
78
10
Parties and Receptions,
1967-1974
79
Publicity
79
General
79
1
Undated
79
2
1943-1983
OM8
Oversize:
Displays
OM8
1
Display 1-25
OM8
2
Unlabeled
79
Tracks
79
3
Undated
79
4
1900-1970
79
Trolleys
79
5
Undated
79
6
1878-1965
79
7
Celebrities,
1932-1968
79
8
HemisFair,
1967-1968
79
9
Military,
1941-1969 and undated
79
San Antonio
79
10
Undated
79
11
1904-1964
79
12
1965-1978
79
13
Trains,
1926-1969
80
1
Miscellaneous,
1956-1981 and undated
80
2
National City Lines,
undated
80
3
Other Cities,
1960-1961 and undated
80
Negatives
Some negatives have prints in the photographs subseries (SFS1)
but the similarity among several prints made it difficult to assign each
negative with a print. There are also some negatives that have no matching
print.
Arranged by subject in negative and organized chronologically.
80
4
Awards,
1958-1970
80
5
Buildings,
1959-1962 and undated
80
6
Buses,
1963-1970 and undated
80
7
Cars and Trucks,
1964-1973 and undated
80
Maintenance Shop
80
8
Undated
80
9
1960-1978
81
1
Miscellaneous,
1962 and undated
81
People
81
2
Undated
81
3
Undated
81
4
1963-1971
81
5
San Antonio,
1973 and undated
81
6
Streetcars,
1930-1968 and undated
Other Formats
Contains a selection of slides, postcards, videotapes and LPs
used by VIA. A small number of artifacts, dating from the streetcar era, are
included.
Arranged by format and organized chronologically.
Slide Cabinet
Slides,
1972 (Slides are kept in cabinet;
Inventory Available)
Slide Cabinet
Buses
Slide Cabinet
People
Slide Cabinet
Trolleys
Slide Cabinet
People
Slide Cabinet
Presentations
Slide Cabinet
VIA
81
Post Cards
81
7
VIA,
1961
82
1
Trolley Museums, undated
82
2
Promotional, undated
82
Video Tapes
82
3
Undated
82
4
Undated
82
5
1978
OM3
Oversize: LPs
OM3
4
The Modern Streetcar, undated
OM3
5
Oversize materials,
undated
OM7
Artifacts, undated
OM7
Oversize: Safety
can
112
Rail
(4 pieces)
112
Measurement devices