Barker Gummere Jr. ’50

Barker died suddenly Sept. 21, 2009, at his home in Newtown, Pa.  

Born in Trenton, he attended Trenton High School. He graduated from Princeton with a bachelor’s degree in history.  

A training program with the Trenton Trust Co. was cut short when he entered the Army in 1951. He served as a sergeant in a finance unit in Korea and then returned to civilian life in 1953. After a few months of travel, he rejoined Trenton Trust, which later merged into National State Bank.

Barker complemented his career in banking with a lifelong passion for trolleys and street railways. He became a respected authority on this subject, writing and co-authoring a number of books, including Streetcars of New Jersey, a consolidation of three prior volumes. He traveled extensively throughout his life, often outside the United States, to research street railways of other cities. He maintained a large collection of photographs and other documentation on the subject.  

Barker was a loyal usher and volunteer for Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Trenton and a volunteer at the Newtown Public Library. Barker never married and is survived by several cousins.