Manitoba Transit Heritage Association - Winnipeg Transit History

MANITOBA TRANSIT HERITAGE ASSOCIATION

1937 Twin Coach model 23R

Bus #111 was part of a five bus order by the Winnipeg Electric Company in 1937. The unit had no back door and originally operated on the Winnipeg - Selkirk commuter line, however it was found to be too small for the route and was transferred to operate on routes within the City of Winnipeg.

The bus remained in service until 1955 at which time it was sold Sutherland Cartage. It was recovered from King’s Welding yard in 1990 and restored by MTHA volunteers in 1993.

Historical Note: The Twin Coach Company was founded in Kent, in 1927, by brothers William B. and Frank R. Fageol. The brothers originally started their business in Oakland, California in 1916 and manufactured trucks for World War I use, as well as pleasure cars for domestic use. They brought the first model of their "Safety Coach" east in 1923, and settled in Kent in 1924 as the Fageol Motor Company. The company was sold to American Car and Foundry Company of Dayton, Ohio, in 1925. During 1927, however, after the Fageols' development of the new form of public transportation called the "Twin Coach," the brothers re-established themselves in their original Kent location as the Twin Coach Company. In addition, a Canadian bus assembly plant was set up at Fort Erie, Ontario, across the Peace Bridge from Buffalo.

The Twin Coach Company ranked second in urban bus manufacturing for approximately twenty years, and it sold buses to major transit operations across North America.