This fall trolley bus tours of Town of Babylon historical spots will run again, after the popular event debuted last year for the 100th anniversary of the one-time trolley line.
The tours, departing from the Town History Museum, housed in the Old Town Hall building at 47 West Main Street, will take place on two different dates: Sunday, September 25 and Sunday, October 16 from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.
The tours will visit notable locations along the historic trolley route between Babylon and Amityville villages, at one point not surprisingly following modern-day Trolley Line Road. The tours will illuminate the history of the Babylon Railroad Company that ran between Babylon and Amityville from 1910 until 1920 with discussions of the different historic places along the trolley route.
The last tour highlighted several different points of local interest, including the Copiague lion sculptures, that unknown to many on the tour, at one time heralded a planned luxury community on the canals south of Montauk Highway.
Tour guides also noted West Babylon neighborhoods in which homeowners' properties overlapped with the original trolley line, and detailed the complicated histories of landmark buildings, like the one-time movie theater in Lindenhurst.
Georgia Cava, the assistant historian with the Town of Babylon Office of Historic Services, says that the first tours, which almost sold out, were a big hit.
"They were so popular everyone was asking us to bring them back. We wanted to wait for cooler weather."
The trolley tours first ran in June 2010, coinciding with the opening of the new history museum, and were a popular draw for Town of Babylon residents interested in local history.
The tours cost $12 for adults (13 to 59 years old) and $9 for children and senior citizens and last approximately one hour. There will be a guide explaining the significance of local sites and historic buildings. There will be five rides per day: 9 a.m., 10:30 a.m., noon, 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. Children under two are free if they ride on a parent's lap.
Call 631-893-2100 for reservations or 631-587-3750 for more information.
