A few years after this Eastlake style Victorian era house was constructed downtown during a brief, late 1880s building boom, the San Diego Cable Railway Company moved it along its line to University Heights. This spec house #1 was meant to enhance and increase interest in the more than 100 vacant lots along Adams Avenue that the company was offering for sale. The house was moved again around 1913 to its current location on Adams Avenue.
The east-west streets of the subdivision were named after U.S. presidents, including Adams Avenue towards the northern boundary and Fillmore Avenue (present-day University Avenue) at the southern boundary.
The north-south streets were named after U.S. states and, from west to east, in a roughly clockwise geographical order starting in the northeast with Maine and ending in the Midwest with Missouri.
Despite the implosion of the Great Boom in the spring of 1888, Choate spearheaded several improvements for the subdivision, including installing water main pipes down every street and a steam-powered streetcar line to the college.
According to another W.H. Holabird & Company ad in December 1888, University Heights was the choice residence property of the city,” and the Electric Motor Rapid Transit Railroad was completed (San Diego Sun 1888).
Norcross & Howard touted the view from the bluffs and the convenience of half-hour trips on the Electric Motor Rapid Transit Railroad in its ads for University Heights.
Despite the promises of its promoters, the sales of lots in University Heights suffered as the real estate market in San Diego collapsed in 1889.
Although the real estate market failed spectacularly in 1888, some important public and private improvements in University Heights continued to be developed. For example, the transit corridors between downtown San Diego and University Heights continued to evolve. The Electric Motor Rapid Transit Railroad completed an electric streetcar route up Fourth Avenue to the college site in University Heights in 1888, but quickly ended service in 1889 because it was not profitable. The San Diego Cable Railway Company redeveloped the same route with cable cars in 1890, and then extended the cable car system to the intersection of Adams Avenue and Park Boulevard in 1891.
Construction for the cable car system began in August 1889, despite the economic downturn. The first cable car ran through town on June 7, 1890, followed by a parade with the City Guard band. The first paying customer was beloved horticulturalist Kate Sessions.
The cable car system had one route, which began at Sixth Avenue, turned west at C Street, then continued north on Fourth Avenue along the Electric Rapid Transit Company’s original route to the college site in University Heights.
The entire line was powered by two large coal-fired steam engines located within a powerhouse near the intersection of Fourth Street (present-day Fourth Avenue) and Spruce Street. The engines turned massive 12-foot-diameter wheels that pulled the cables. In 1891, the line was extended north on Carolina Street (present-day Park Boulevard) and terminated at Adams Avenue, where the company created The Bluffs park and pavilion.
Turntables for the one-ender cars were built at the present-day intersections of Sixth Avenue and L Street, Fourth Avenue and Spruce Street, and Park Boulevard and Adams Avenue.
While the cable car line was popular, it was not profitable. The line was $4,000 in debt for coal and lost $1,100 each successive month it ran. In November 1891, the California National Bank failed due to “Wild Cat loans” and “reckless speculation”. Dare, the president of the company, left for Europe with funds from the California National Bank and never returned. The bank failed to open the following day, and Collins committed suicide. In March 1892, the San Diego Cable Railway Company was declared insolvent.
The last cable car ran on October 15, 1892, following a court order to shut down for lack of funds. In 1895, George B. Kerper purchased and reorganized the company into the Citizens’ Traction Company, and converted the cable cars into electric streetcars. The cable winding equipment in the powerhouse at Fourth Street and Spruce Street was replaced with two generators. Overhead electric lines were installed and eight of the old cable cars were outfitted with 25-horsepower electric motors.
New attractions were added at The Bluffs, which was renamed Mission Cliff Park, making it a popular end-of-the-line destination. However, the Citizens’ Traction Company did not survive the depression of the 1890s, and fell into receivership by 1898. The cable car only ran for a brief period of time, but it played a pivotal role in the development of northern University Heights. It was the first means of public transportation that reached the intersection of Park Boulevard and Adams Avenue, and it led to the creation of the immensely popular Mission Cliff Gardens.
