From the late 19th century to today, transportation has shaped the physical development and social characteristics of America's urban environments. Focusing on the history of public transportation, this exhibit shows how private interests, public policy and issues of personal freedom and mobility have affected and continue to affect national, regional and local land use patterns and community development. The National Streetcar Museum at Lowell, a satellite exhibit of the Seashore Trolley Museum in Kennebunkport, Maine, presents this special exhibit to explore the history of urban rail transportation and how its rebirth is helping to revitalize American cities. This exhibit, contributed in a large part by the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., presents the history of public transit in Lowell within the context of the broader story of American transit history.