AURORA — Trolley Trailer No. 610 has been tucked away from sight for most of its existence, hidden for 56 years in an abandoned farmhouse in east Aurora, only to be locked up in a tiny storage unit after its recovery in 2006.
A man named Dr. Edwin Perrott purchased the decommissioned trolley trailer in 1950 for $50, then whittled and embedded the car into the center of his home and made it into his bedroom, said Jennifer Kuehner, director of the Aurora History Museum. There, in the dark, it was forgotten.
With the permission of William Perrott, Edwin’s son, the city of Aurora and the Aurora History Museum, and with the help of The Weitz Co., recovered Trolley Trailer No. 610 from the Perrotts’ farmhouse before it was demolished. Perrott donated the artifact to the Aurora History Museum in 2006.
For three years, Morey Miller and a team of about 16 volunteers spent a total of 4,400 hours restoring No. 610.
Now, the completely refreshed, rebuilt trolley is the centerpiece of a gallery expansion at the Aurora History Museum. In January, Kueh-ner said the museum hopes to break ground on the addition on the east side of the building to permanently house the trolley trailer.
