Founded as the John Stephenson Car Company in New York in 1831, this company created the first streetcar to run on rails in 1832. It supplied some early horsecars to Portland, some of which came pre-used from a streetcar company in Brooklyn. Like so many other streetcar companies, it was acquired by the J. G. Brill Company (1904). It continued to operate under its original name until 1917, and its remaining assets were liquidated in 1919.