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Israelite House of David - Embarkation Point for Large Crowds of Tourists
  
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With the opening of the Eden Springs Park in 1908 Britain Avenue bisected the House of David colony with the park on the south side and the member's primary residential buildings and workshops on the north side. This stretch of Avenue was the embarkation point for large crowds of tourists to and from the park. This early picture of Britain Ave. is from about 1909 or 1910. The photographer is standing under the landmark 1906 arch that connected the Bethlehem and Jerusalem residential buildings facing south. The tracks shown in picture #18 would have run up the middle of the street in the center of the image. The building pictured on the right is the train depot just across Britain Ave. In the middle of the picture can just be seen a miniature locomotive pulling into the back of the station in the far background. This early depot was expanded over the years and the portion shown here became the western wing of the later depot. Just visible on the roof of this early depot is a sign that reads "End of the Line". This sign had a double meaning. While colonists would claim a wink of an eye that the sign was in reference to the little train system many a tourist disembarked from the streetcars believing it to be the end of the streetcar line. In this way they became visitors at the Eden Springs Park instead of one of the other resorts further east on the streetcar line.
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