Southern Coach Lines stock certificate 1943 (Tennessee) - regional bus lines

Early Tennessee municipal bus line. Plain certificate, preferred shares, orange border. Issued and cancelled. Dated 1943. Measures approximately 12.5 x 9 inches.

Unlisted in reference book, American Automotive Stock Certificates, by Larry Falater.

Incorporated 1940, Southern Coach Lines was a prominent, historic public transportation and streetcar-to-bus conversion company that operated in Tennessee—most notably in Nashville and Chattanooga—from the 1940 through the mid-20th century. The company is no longer in operation and does not have any active, modern-day transit services. Instead, the legacy of Southern Coach Lines survives as a piece of Tennessee's local transit and railroad history.

SCL’s story is one that commences in pride, but ends in failure. At its inception, in just a few months after its entrance into the Chattanooga market, America was brought into the Second World War by the attack on Pearl Harbor. With the resulting tire and gas rationing and shortage in securing new equipment and bus parts, SCL was soon being pushed to capacity to serve in its territory.

With the war over, on November 16, 1945, the last streetcar was operated over the scenic Ridge carline, By September 11, 1946, with the arrival of new 41-S Twin Coach-built motor coaches, the last Oak Street streetcar was operated. Commencing November 11, 1946, with the opening of the new Dupont textile plant, service began to be offered to that sprawling complex north of the river

In March of 1962, American Transportation Enterprises (ATE) of New York City, purchased the controlling interest in United Transit of which SCL had been a subsidiary since 1945. The two properties now consisted besides Chattanooga, of transit properties in Nashville, Akron and Youngstown, Ohio; Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Springfield, Illinois; Richmond and Norfolk, Virginia, Allentown, Harrisburg and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, Omaha, Wilmington, Delaware and the Cincinnati, Newport & Covington Transportation Company operating in Cincinnati and its Kentucky suburbs.

Chattanooga Operations:
Took over transit assets in 1941, officially replacing the last electric streetcars with a motorized bus fleet by 1947. The company ran the city's bus lines until 1973 when its assets were purchased to create the Chattanooga Area Regional Transportation Authority (CARTA).

Nashville Operations:
Acquired local streetcar and transit routes in 1941, officially changing its local operating name to the Nashville Transit Company in 1953.

[Note – above description pulled from Google AI referencing Wikipedia and bluehoundsandredhounds.info]

Product descriptions and images
Please note that some pictures may only be representative of the inventory available.  If we have more than one piece, we are unable to scan and display every piece.  Unless otherwise noted, that there are variations for signatures, cancellation marks/holes, serial number, and dates.  Colors will be as noted and pictured.