A PERMANENT HOME FOR THE SPEED TROPHY.

Years ago, a magazine called Electric Traction suggested the interurban railways could offer a better value proposition by running the cars faster, and held an annual fastest schedule contest, complete with a travelling trophy.  The first company to win the trophy was the Galveston-Houston Electric, in 1925 and 1926: after that Chicago area interurbans, the South Shore Line and North Shore Line, took turns posting the fastest schedules, until the North Shore Line won permanent possession of the trophy in 1933 after winning the contest three straight years.

That permanent possession rule was laid out by the magazine's editors, although continuing the contest into the Depression was going to be moot.  A number of the interurbans that submitted schedules in the 1920s had quit business by then, and Electric Traction (not to be confused with the ferroequinologist Electric Traction Quarterly) also left business.

The trophy, apparently, remained in North Shore's offices until abandonment.

The trophy itself passed into possession of the last president of the line, Harold G. Mason. His son David Mason has now donated it to [Illinois Railway Museum].

We are very grateful to Mr. Mason for this very generous donation. IRM was obviously the most appropriate choice for this unique artifact, firstly because we are the premier North Shore museum with the only comprehensive collection of preserved North Shore equipment.

Randall Hicks notes, "First of all, it's amazing that this trophy is still in existence, and in perfect condition, and secondly, that it has finally found a permanent home where it will be preserved and eventually displayed."

Good.  There are numerous North Shore and South Shore cars and motors at the museum, as well as a few cars from also-ran interurban companies such as Chicago Aurora and Elgin, The Milwaukee Electric, Indiana Railroad, Michigan Railways, and Illinois Terminal on the museum grounds, and in service.

I'm not sure if any stock from Galveston-Houston Electric made it into preservation.