WHEN TROLLEYS RAN THE RAILS: This 1929 photo of a trolley car on the route between Trenton and New Brunswick is included among the West Windsor Historical Society’s remembrances of the historic Trolley Line Trail.

By Anne Levin

Back in the early days of the last century, trolley lines were key links in local transportation systems. The line that ran from Trenton to New Brunswick from 1902 to 1937 spanned 27.5 miles, stopping along the way in West Windsor.

West Windsor Township happens to be in the midst of celebrating its 225th birthday this year, and recognizing the route is part of the schedule. This Saturday, April 23, at 10 a.m. and 12 and 2 p.m., bicycle tours of the old trolley line trail — now a pedestrian walking trail — are being offered by the West Windsor Historical Society and the West Windsor Bicycle and Pedestrian Alliance.

Departing from West Windsor Community Park Pavilion, the tours will run along the PSE&G power lines, the route once taken by the trolleys. The 10 a.m. tour includes a ribbon-cutting for a recently constructed extension to the trail. All three tours will explore the story of the trolley line, touching on other West Windsor history topics along the way.

“What used to be the trolley line is now a pedestrian walking path, and not many people know about its history,” said Paul Ligeti, who is vice president of the historical society. “We thought people would like to know.”

Saturday’s tours are just one part of a year-long series of events commemorating West Windsor’s history. They began in January with a lecture by author and historian Larry Kidder on “Ten Crucial Days,” about West Windsor’s role in the Revolutionary War; and conclude in December at the West Windsor History Museum. Numerous events are planned for this summer, including a cemetery tour and lecture, an antique car show, a cricket tournament, a history and culture parade, a Revolutionary War Colonial reenactment, open space tours, and more.

“The historical society, local government, and other municipal groups are collaborating on a whole variety of events,” said Ligeti. “There are ongoing projects, including the installation of historic markers in different historic villages; and beautifying the cemetery at Princeton Baptist Church [on Route 1], on which we are working a bit with Princeton University.”

A portion of Princeton University’s Lake Campus, currently under construction, is located in West Windsor. Up until about 50 years ago, the township was rural and predominantly agricultural. “A lot of people don’t know that the western boundary used to extend up to Nassau Street,” said Ligeti. “And even today, some don’t know where the border between Princeton and West Windsor is located.”

The township is probably best known for the infamous 1938 radio broadcast War of the Worlds, during which Orson Welles, of the Mercury Theatre program, told terrified listeners that the West Windsor town Grovers Mill was the site of a Martian invasion. Though the hoax made international news and is considered a watershed moment in broadcast history, not everyone is aware of its notoriety.

“There are actually a huge number of residents who don’t know about it,” said Ligeti. “And they are surprised when they find out.”

For more information about the tours and other events celebrating West Windsor’s 225th anniversary, visit westwindsorhistory.com.

“It makes it that much richer to live in a place if you know the history and you’re tied into it,” said Ligeti. “Regardless if families have lived here for two days or 200 years, it is everyone’s history. It’s a unifying thing.”