There are lots of ways to get a taste of Wellsboro and its environs, but one of the most unique is by trolley—Tony’s Trolley, that is. Riders climb on board at the trolley-specific spot in front of the Arcadia Theatre on Main Street (book ahead at tonystrolleytours.com, [email protected], (570) 723-7777, or take a chance that there will be an empty seat), miniature greyhounds Lulu and Dixie welcome them, conductor/driver/owner Tony Yeager breaks the ice as only Tony can, and the tour, which typically lasts one-and-a-half hours, begins.

Tony was born in Reading, Pennsylvania. His father was the area’s first Volvo dealer back in the ’60s, so Tony’s love for the auto industry came right from childhood. He lived in Lancaster County for many years, then, after a divorce, he was ready for something different. That turned out to be a move north, this after talking with Bruce Cole, an engineer from the Coudersport area who offered to sell him a cabin and some land. Tony recalls that it would “change my life completely if I moved north.” It was 2000. He lived in the Ulysses area of Potter County initially, and, on the first night he spent in his new home, he heard the peepers, saw the dark starlit skies, and “experienced a peace beyond compare.” He subsequently moved to Tioga County, opened Dynomite Mechanics on Route 6, just west of Wellsboro, became an authorized Speed Queen dealer, and restored old cars. One day his brother-in-law, Steve, mentioned that he’d seen a trolley for sale. Tony passed. He was too busy, and the trolley needed too much work.

But the thought of a trolley somehow took root. A trolley tour would be an asset to the community, he thought. He could share what he loved about this area. As he searched online for cars to restore, he started looking for trolleys, too. And finally, there it was! A big, red trolley, built in 1995, used as a shuttle to Chicago’s airports. It was in just okay condition, but still ran and had low mileage. It got only ten to twelve miles per gallon, but the owners would deliver.

It was set to arrive one afternoon at 1 p.m., but it was 3 the following morning before it showed up, in tow because the transmission had blown up over the Allegheny summit on I-80. Not a problem for Tony. It took him six months to bring the trolley back to life, including refinishing the wood seating. After obtaining all the permits and insurance, he was road-ready.

Tony first thought he would run only on holidays. But Tony’s Trolley was catching on with visitors and locals alike. He decided to offer scheduled tours on weekends, specials during the Laurel Festival and Dickens of a Christmas, and charters for birthdays, weddings, and other special events.

After several years, Tony became so busy with his other businesses that, in 2018, he sold the trolley. He watched it go idle during the covid pandemic. Fast-forward to 2024. Tony repurchased the trolley and ran it “just for fun” in Wellsboro for the Laurel Festival, where attendees “went nuts,” he recalls. “Everybody wanted me to do it again.” He resisted recreating “a blast from the past,” but started giving it some thought.

The matter was settled as he was asked repeatedly to participate in Christmas on Main Street, including a stop at the nearby Highland Chocolate factory. He agreed. Marsha Chesko, a member of the Christmas on Main Street committee and a former business owner in the borough, rode the trolley that day, and says it was “a big hit.”

“It gives visitors and locals another thing to do in town,” she says. “It helps all the businesses by keeping people in town a bit longer to hop a trolley.”

It was, Tony recalls, “the best time ever.”

So, let the fun begin again. Tours get underway (check the website for times and days) as Tony, who is unapologetic regarding his affection for Wellsboro, apologizes for “the only history I’ll read.” That’s as he relates the story of the Penn Wells Hotel, including the story of a contractor working in the hotel telling him about the razor blades found in the walls during a renovation—they came from the slit in the medicine cabinet for used blades in the rooms’ bathrooms. He takes a turn around the Green noting the events that take place there, the music to be enjoyed during the summer on a Wednesday evening when the Town Band strikes up, and points out the iconic Wynken, Blynken, and Nod statue and its history.

He circles the downtown, sharing history on Dunham’s Department Store and the Wellsboro Diner, and pointing out various eateries, the school, the well-kept homes, the Green Free Library, the Gmeiner Art and Cultural Center, the Deane Center for the Performing Arts, and the variety of locally owned businesses.

The trolley then makes its way over the mountains that separate Wellsboro from Leonard Harrison State Park and Pennsylvania’s Grand Canyon as Tony points out the farms, the historic Middle Ridge Church, and other interesting sites. Stopping at the park for a brief peek down the canyon, the trolley then heads back toward town. Riders watch a movie about the canyon’s history, and then Tony plays Judy Garland’s “The Trolley Song,” from Meet Me in St. Louis. He “clang-clang-clangs” the bell right along with Judy, and “tips his hat,” a gift created for him by Wellsboro’s own Christine Moore, also known as milliner to the Triple Crown. He finishes the tour passing by the “House of Love,” on West Avenue, now La Belle Auberge B&B and Emerge Spa, originally a surprise gift from a husband to his wife, who had begged for a place closer to the borough than their rural home.

At the end of the line, Lulu and Dixie preside over the bear basket (it’s $25 cash for the tour on the honor system) as Tony exits the trolley to help passengers pose for pictures and discuss how to book the trolley for private events.

Then he’ll tip his hat, ring his bell, and greet the next group.