Early London tram. Trams were introduced to London, UK by an American called George Francis Train in 1861. The first trams were horse-drawn, but as they ran on smooth metal tracks they were easier to pull than carts. Electric trams, powered by a cable buried beneath the road, were introduced in 1903. By the 1930s London had the largest tram network in the world with 555 kilometres of track and 2600 cars. However, the rise in popularity of the motor bus led to the trams' decline, and the last tram was removed form service in 1952. This image is from the Bain News Service, one of America's oldest news picture agencies, which holds images dating from the 1890s to the 1930s.