Vintage Parkville-Overlea: The Turnaround

It's hard for me to believe there was ever a streetcar line in Overlea; intellectually I'm aware it was there, but it seems like a relic of a bygone era to me.

Nevertheless, here it is—photographic evidence.

This photo was posted to the Overlea Community Association Facebook group by Doris Franz-Poling. It was taken by her father, George Franz.

Franz, a lifelong Overlea resident, has since passed away but his legacy lives on in a collection of more than 20,000 photos he took.

This photo, which shows the streetcar turnaround on Belair Road, looks westbound up Overlea Avenue, Franz-Poling said.

An interesting note, Franz said, is that the cars on Overlea Avenue are traveling westbound. Today, the street runs in the opposite direction.

Additionally, a number of houses in the background have been torn down since the photo was taken in what Franz estimates to be the mid-1950s.

In their place stands St. James Lutheran Church.

Did you grow up in Parkville-Overlea? Share your memories of the neighborhoods in the comments.