Southridge Mall Train Ride

This train ride operated inside the Southridge Mall in the Milwaukee suburb of Greendale, Wisconsin. The Southridge Mall opened in 1970. This train (later repainted to resemble Thomas the Tank Engine) apparently operated until 2012 before being replaced by a trackless train in 2013. This picture was taken during the Milwaukee School of Engineering Society of Model Engineers New Member Orientation Program in December 1997 and was saved from the SOME files.

1992 California Trip: California Western Railroad

Photo by Cliff West

On our family's California trip, we arrived in Fort Bragg on the afternoon of March 17, 1992. Due to our unscheduled exploration of The Geysers, we were too late to ride the California Western Railroad to Willits, so we spent the night in Fort Bragg. Our motel in Fort Bragg was the best we stayed in during the entire trip. It was a fairly new motel with an indoor swimming pool. Meanwhile, my dad went down to the California Western depot and got these pictures of a California Western freight train arriving in Fort Bragg.

The California Western Railroad was originally built in 1885 by the Fort Bragg Lumber Company as the Fort Bragg Railroad. In 1904, passenger service was inaugurated. On July 1, 1905, the railroad was renamed the California Western Railroad & Navigation Company. The railroad was completed to Willits and a connection with the Northwestern Pacific Railroad on December 11, 1911. Self-propelled gas-powered railcars were added for passenger service in 1925, they were nicknamed "skunks" because of the smell of their exhaust. The "skunks" soon took over passenger service, and regular steam-powered passenger train service ended in November 1929.  On December 19, 1947, the name was shortened to California Western Railroad. In June 1987, the California Western was sold to Kyle Railways.

Photo by Cliff West

California Western GP9R #64 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in January 1955 as Southern Pacific #5607. In 1965 it was renumbered to #3444. It was rebuilt at Southern Pacific's Sacramento General Shops to GP9R #3311 on May 11, 1970. It was retired by Southern Pacific on December 17, 1986 and sold to Metal Processing, Inc. in Vinton, Texas on January 2, 1988. It was resold later that year to Kyle Railways as #1750, and was transferred to the California Western in May 1989.

The second locomotive is California Western RS11 #62. It was originally built by Alco Products in April 1959 as Southern Pacific #5854. In 1965 it was renumbered to #2919. It was sold to Kyle Railways on January 10, 1980, and was later assigned to the California Western.

The next day, we rode the California Western Railroad’s “Skunk Train” from Fort Bragg to Willits and back. While we waited for departure time, we made a souvenir flatted penny in a machine in the depot. I also got a single-use camera so I could take pictures of the ride. I took this picture of California Western motorcar M-300 waiting in front of the Fort Bragg depot for passengers to board.

Motorcar M-300 is a Motorailer built by American Car & Foundry in 1935 as Seaboard Air Line #2026. It was the third of a group of three built for the Seaboard. It became Aberdeen & Rockfish #106 in 1944 and then became Salt Lake, Garfield & Western MC-3 in 1951. It was purchased by the California Western in 1963.

Photo by Cliff West

Dad took this picture of the front end of motorcar M-300 at Northspur, the midpoint of the line, where the train makes a brief stop. Passengers have the option of remaining in Northspur, where there is a picnic area, and waiting for the train to return from Willits.

Since I took a picture of the front of motorcar M-300 in Fort Bragg, I took this picture of the rear end at Northspur.

Photo by Cliff West

At one point the railroad goes around several horseshoe curves, and another part of the line appears to be a parallel track. My dad took this photo to illustrate it. This is one of the five horseshoe curves with a total length of 6.5 miles required to climb 932 feet between two points 1.5 miles apart.

Here is a view from the train I took as it approached Tunnel #2, the second of the two tunnels on the line. This tunnel is 795 feet long and was completed in 1911.

Photo by Cliff West

My dad took this picture of the train’s engineer at the controls.

I took this picture looking back at the interior of motorcar M-300 as we travelled, showing the light passenger load on this March weekday.

Here is a picture I took of a horse I spotted along the line as we approached Willits.

As we entered Willits, I spotted this green & white patrol car of the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office stopped at a railroad crossing on California State Route 20 and snapped a picture, as I’d never seen a green & white police car before. At this point the highway crosses Broaddus Creek, which parallels the railroad here.

Photo by Cliff West

While the train was turned around in Willits, we had a little time to explore. At Willits, the California Western connected with the Northwestern Pacific Railroad, a subsidiary of the Southern Pacific. There was a variety of railroad equipment in Willits that my dad took the opportunity to photograph. Arcata & Mad River #102 is a General Electric 44-Tonner. It was built in 1950 for the Pine Flat Dam Contractors and was acquired in 1954 by the Arcata & Mad River Railroad, a small shortline that connected to the Northwestern Pacific Railroad at Arcata, California, north of Eureka. The Arcata & Mad River shut down on May 24, 1985, and the abandoned line was sold to the Eureka Southern in 1988. This locomotive was sold to a private owner and was stored in Willits. It has since been scrapped.

Photo by Cliff West

Eureka Southern Caboose #51 is former Southern Pacific caboose #1101. It is a C-40-3 Class Caboose built by SP’s Los Angeles Shops in 1942. The Eureka Southern purchased the northern section of the Northwestern Pacific from the Southern Pacific in 1984, and operated from Eureka to Willits. The Eureka Southern would declare bankruptcy in April 1992, a month after our visit.

Photo by Cliff West

California Western #53 is a DS-4-4-1000 built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1949 as U.S. Army Corps of Engineers W8380. It was later sold to Pan American Engineering and was acquired by the California Western in 1956. It was retired in 1985 and sold to a John Bradley of Laytonville, California, but remained stored in Willits.

Photo by Cliff West

Central California Traction #42 is an S-1 that was built by the American Locomotive Company (later called Alco Products) in 1942 as Northern Pacific Terminal Company #34 for use in Portland, Oregon. It was sold to Central California Traction in August 1965. It was retired and sold in March 1983 to a Jim Bruggere who stored it in Willits.

Photo by Cliff West

California Western #57 is an S-12 originally built by Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton in September 1953 as Southern Pacific #1541. In 1965 it was renumbered to #2148. It was retired by Southern Pacific on May 24, 1973, and was sold to the California Western on August 9, 1973. The California Western sold it to John Bradley of Laytonville, California, in January 1985. 

Photo by Cliff West

Southern Pacific SD9R #4418 is wearing the “Kodachrome” paint scheme of the Southern Pacific’s aborted merger with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe. It was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in May 1955 as Southern Pacific #5432. In 1965 it was renumbered to #3910. On November 5, 1976, it was upgraded at Southern Pacific's Sacramento General Shops as SD9R #4418. It was painted in SPSF's "Kodachrome" colors in 1986, and continued to wear them despite the merger being denied by the Interstate Commerce Commission on June 30, 1987, and would continue to wear them to its retirement on September 18, 1995.

Photo by Cliff West

Eureka Southern #30 is a GP38 built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in 1969 as Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines #2007. It was built with dual control stands, and part of the front wall of the cab is extended forward a few inches to make a little more room to walk around the control stand.

Photo by Cliff West

This locomotive became Conrail #7667 before being sold to Eureka Southern in 1984 with three other identical GP38s. All four locomotives would be sold shortly after Eureka Southern’s bankruptcy in April 1992.

After our train was turned around, we returned to the Willits depot and reboarded for the return trip to Fort Bragg. Here are some pictures I took of motorcar M-300’s control stand while we waited for departure time.

We departed Willits to return to Fort Bragg aboard the train. Here is another view I took as we approached Tunnel #2, this time from the other end.

Here is a view I took from onboard the train as it approached Tunnel #1. The train is on a trestle over the Noyo River right up until it enters the tunnel. The tunnel is 1,100 feet long and was completed in 1893.

Photo by Cliff West

After returning to Fort Bragg, my dad took one last picture of California Western Caboose #11, on static display at the Fort Bragg depot. The plywood-bodied caboose was built in Fort Bragg in the 1960s, on the frame of a former Southern Pacific wood caboose.

1992 California Trip: San Francisco Cable Cars

Photo by Cliff West

The first cable car system was built in San Francisco in 1873. Cable car systems continued to grow until the 1890s, when electric streetcars began to arrive. The 1906 earthquake damaged many of the cable car systems, and they were replaced with streetcars. The city tried to eliminate all cable car systems in 1947, however the issue went to public referendum, and the people overwhelmingly supported the cable cars. Over the coming years, cable car lines were shut down one by one, until October 1, 1964, when the San Francisco cable cars became a National Historic Landmark. They are operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway.

Photo by Cliff West

There are three operational cable car lines in San Francisco: the Powell & Mason line, the Powell & Hyde line, and the California Street line. These pictures were taken on the Powell & Mason line, at the turntable at the end of the line at Taylor Street. Though the cable cars look historic, they have all been extensively rebuilt in the late 20th century, though some original components are retained. Beginning in the 1960s, some entirely new streetcars have been built for the system, following the original designs.

Caboose at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Union Pacific CA-5 Caboose #25256 was built by Union Pacific’s Omaha Shops in July 1952 as #3956. It was renumbered to #25256 in June 1959. It was retired in September 1983 and donated to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, in October 1983.

Dynamometer Car at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Southern Pacific Dynamometer Car #137 was built in 1926 by Standard Steel Car with dynamometer equipment and instrumentation from the Baldwin Locomotive Works. Designed to measure the performance of steam locomotives, it was assigned to the Motive Power Department but was also used for freight car testing. In the 1950s it was equipped with new instrumentation for diesel locomotive measurements. As measuring technology advanced, the car eventually became obsolete. It was retired in December 1975 and was donated to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, by Southern Pacific in December 1979.

Santa Fe Locomotives at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Pictured here at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California are Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe F7A #347C with F3B #347B coupled behind it. These passenger diesels are F-units built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors and are painted in the Santa Fe's famous Warbonnet paint scheme.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #347C is an F7A that was built in September 1949 as #39C. It was renumbered to #306C in April or May of 1971 and was leased to Amtrak in June 1971. By August 1973 it had returned to ATSF and been renumbered to #347C.

Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #347B is an F3B that was built in January 1949 as #35A. It was renumbered to #307B in April or May of 1971 and was leased to Amtrak in June 1971. In August 1973 it returned to ATSF and was renumbered to #347B.

These two locomotives were retired in July 1975 and were donated to the California State Railroad Museum in March 1986.

Sacramento Northern Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Sacramento Northern locomotive #402 is pictured on the California State Railroad Museum’s turntable. It is an SW1 originally built by the Electro-Motive Corporation in 1939 as Western Pacific #502. Western Pacific sold it to its Sacramento Northern subsidiary in December 1965 and it became #402. It was retired in July 1981. When the Western Pacific was merged into the Union Pacific in 1983, the Sacramento Northern was merged along with it. The locomotive was donated to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, by Union Pacific in October 1983.

Cab Forward Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Southern Pacific AC-12 Class 4-8-8-2 #4294 was built by Baldwin in 1944 and was retired in March 1956. It is the only surviving example of Southern Pacific’s unique Cab Forward locomotives.

Southern Pacific purchased two conventional 2-8-8-2 articulated locomotives from Baldwin in 1909, but discovered the smoke posed a danger to crews in the tunnels and snowsheds of the mountainous routes they were needed for. The Cab Forward design was developed to solve these problems, placing the crew ahead of the locomotive’s exhaust. The first 2-8-8-2 Cab Forward locomotives were delivered in 1910 and proved to be a success for the Southern Pacific. In addition to the 2-8-8-2 wheel arrangement, Southern Pacific also ordered Cab Forwards with a 2-6-6-2 wheel arrangement which were quickly converted to the 4-6-6-2 arrangement. In 1928, Southern Pacific purchased its first Cab Forwards with a 4-8-8-2 wheel arrangement, the AC-1 class. Southern Pacific ultimately purchased a total of 256 Cab Forward locomotives. All were built by Baldwin, and no other American railroad followed Southern Pacific’s example.

Photo by Cliff West

Southern Pacific #4294 was the last steam locomotive purchased by the Southern Pacific. It was in service from March 19, 1944 to March 5, 1956. Southern Pacific wrote off its last Cab Forwards in September 1958. Southern Pacific #4294 was placed on display outside the Sacramento, California, station and dedicated to the city of Sacramento on October 19, 1958. In 1967 it was moved to make room an Interstate 5 ramp, and was stored at Southern Pacific’s Sacramento yards until restored in 1981 and placed in the California State Railroad Museum’s Railroad History Museum in Sacramento. 

Northwestern Pacific at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

This is the herald of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad, which ran from Schellville and San Rafael to Eureka on the northern California coast. Established in 1907, the Northwestern Pacific was initially jointly owned by the Southern Pacific and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. The Northwestern Pacific purchased its last new steam locomotives in 1922. In 1929 the Santa Fe sold its half to the Southern Pacific, making the NWP a subsidiary of the SP. The last Northwestern Pacific steam locomotive ran on September 20, 1953. From then on, the Northwestern Pacific leased locomotives from its parent, Southern Pacific.

I think this herald was on the tender of T-46 Class 4-6-0 locomotive #112, which was built by the American Locomotive Company in 1908. It was last run in May 1952 and was retired on October 31, 1952. It was donated to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society on June 18, 1953. Repainted in two-tone green, it was exhibited at Southern Pacific’s centennial display in Sacramento, California, in August 1955.  A restoration was completed on May 18, 1965, and it was moved to the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento in 1978. It is the sole surviving Northwestern Pacific locomotive.

Nevada Short Line Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

The Nevada Short Line was a short-lived 36-inch gauge railroad built to reach silver mines in Nevada. Established in 1913 and incorporated in 1914, the 12.5-mile railroad featured a switchback and a 6% grade. Nevada Short Line #1 was one of the line’s two locomotives. It is a 2-6-0 Mogul originally built by Baldwin in 1879 as Utah & Northern Railway Company #13. It passed through several owners before it was purchased by the Nevada Short Line in August 1913 and became their #1.The railroad was damaged by flooding in June 1918 and was abandoned on December 31, 1920. The locomotive was sold to a scrap dealer who resold it to the Nevada Central Railroad of Battle Mountain, Nevada, where it became #6. Like the former North Pacific Coast #12, Sonoma, it was acquired by Nevada Central’s general manager J. M. Hiskey and was used at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island in San Francisco, where it last ran in October 1940. In 1941 it was donated to the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, and was donated to the state of California in 1969. It is new displayed at the California State Railroad Museum’s Railroad History Museum in Sacramento, California.

Sonoma Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

North Pacific Coast Railroad 36-inch gauge 4-4-0 locomotive #12, the Sonoma, was built by Baldwin in 1876 and was last run in October 1940. The North Pacific Coast operated an 80-mile main line between Sausalito and Duncans Mills, but always faced financial difficulty. By the end of 1879, the Sonoma had been sold to the Nevada Central Railroad, where it became #5 and was named General J. H. Ledlie. It was still in service when the Nevada Central was abandoned in 1938, and the line’s general manager J. M. Hiskey acquired it and loaned it to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society. It was taken to the Southern Pacific shops in Berkeley on December 15, 1938, and made to resemble Central Pacific #60 Jupiter for the daily reenactment of the completion of the transcontinental railroad at the Golden Gate International Exposition on Treasure Island in San Francisco. After the exposition, the locomotive was put into storage in October 1940 and has not run since. It was moved to the new California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, in 1977. In 1978 it was donated to the museum by the J. M. Hiskey family. It has been restored to its original appearance.

J.W. Bowker Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Virginia & Truckee 2-4-0 locomotive #21, the J.W. Bowker, was built by Baldwin in 1875. Named for V&T master mechanic John William Bowker, it was built with a Knowles steam water pump for firefighting and was used as the switcher in Virginia City. It was renamed Mexico in 1876. It was sold in 1896 to the Sierra Nevada Wood & Lumber Company in Hobart Mills, California. It was donated to the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society in June 1937. It was used by Cecil B. DeMille in the 1939 film Union Pacific. Its last run was in June1953 in San Francisco. It has been displayed at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, since 1976. It is the only surviving Baldwin 2-4-0 in the United States.

Empire Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Virginia & Truckee 2-6-0 locomotive #13, the Empire, was built by Baldwin in 1873. Ordered due to an upswing in freight traffic requiring a more powerful locomotive than the 4-4-0 American-type, the Empire was delivered in February 1873. By the late 1880s, the traffic surge had abated, and the Empire was held in reserve until it was overhauled and returned to regular freight service for another upswing in 1902. In 1910, it was converted from a wood-burner to an oil-burner, and was renumbered to #15, because superstitious crews thought the number 13 was unlucky. The Empire was retired and stored in 1918, and was sold to the Pacific Portland Cement Company of Gerlach, Nevada, where it became #501 and was used as a switcher until 1931, when it last operated. In 1938 it was donated to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Locomotive and Railway Historical Society and moved to the San Francisco Bay Area for storage. It was cosmetically restored in 1966 at the Bethlehem Steel Corporation’s San Francisco shipyards. In 1976 it was moved to the new California State Railroad Museum’s Central Pacific Railroad Passenger Station in Sacramento, California, and two years later underwent a complete restoration. It was placed in the California State Railroad Museum’s Railroad History Museum in 1981.

Genoa Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Virginia & Truckee 4-4-0 locomotive #12, the Genoa, was built by Baldwin in January 1873. The Virginia & Truckee Railroad Company was organized on March 5, 1868, and the 21-mile route between Carson City and Virginia City was completed on January 29, 1870, with an extension connecting Carson City to the Central Pacific Railroad in Reno completed in August 1872. The Genoa pulled passenger, freight and mixed trains on the V&T for nearly 30 years. On December 31, 1908, the Genoa was retired and stored in the Carson City engine house, where it remained until it was sold to the Eastern Railroads Presidents’ Conference in 1939. The Genoa was modified to resemble Central Pacific Railroad #60 Jupiter, one of the locomotives at the driving of the golden spike completing the transcontinental railroad in 1869. It was used in the Railroads on Parade pageant at the 1939-1940 World’s Fair in New York City, and operated at the 1948 Chicago Railroad Fair. It was donated to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, which presented it to the state of California in 1969. For the 100th anniversary of the transcontinental railroad, Genoa It reprised its role as Jupiter for the golden spike reenactment at Promontory Summit in Utah, with Virginia & Truckee #11 Reno playing the part of Union Pacific #119. The Genoa’s last run was at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, in May 1979. It was then restored to its 1902 appearance as seen here.

C.P. Huntington Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

Photo by Cliff West

Southern Pacific 4-2-4T locomotive #1, the C.P. Huntington, is displayed in front of a large window at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California. It was originally built by Danforth, Cooke & Company of Paterson, New Jersey, in 1863, as the Central Pacific Railroad’s third locomotive, #3, and it arrived in San Francisco on March 19, 1864. It was named for Collis P Huntington, Vice President of the Central Pacific. The locomotive is 29.5 feet long and weighs 21.75 tons. it could pull 4 times its weight. It had a top speed of 35 miles per hour and could maintain a speed of 15 mph on a grade of 26 feet per mile (0.49%). The Central Pacific would have preferred to purchase a larger locomotive, but none were available due to the importance of railroads in the Civil War. The C.P. Huntington was used in the construction of the transcontinental railroad. In 1879 it was transferred to the Southern Pacific Railroad, by then under the same control as the Central Pacific, and became SP #1. It was involved in a head-on collision in 1872 and was rebuilt in 1875 and received a new boiler in 1888. It was renumbered to #1001 in 1891. 

Photo by Cliff West

As Southern Pacific’s oldest locomotive, the C.P. Huntington was displayed at the 1892 California State Fair and the 1894 California Mid-Winter International Exposition before being retired in 1900. It was rebuilt as a weed burner in 1901 but was unsatisfactory. It was rebuilt again in 1910 and used as a shop switcher. It was nearly scrapped in 1914 but was instead restored for display and the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco. It continued to make appearances at special events, and was last run in May 1939 at the opening of the Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal. In September 1964, the Southern Pacific Railroad donated the locomotive to the state of California and it was placed on display at the old state fairgrounds in Sacramento. It was donated to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society in June 1969. In 1970 it was refurbished by Southern Pacific’s Sacramento Shops and in 1979 it was placed in the California State Railroad Museum’s reconstructed Central Pacific Railroad Passenger Station. In 1980 it was restored to its appearance at the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. It is the only surviving standard-gauge 4-2-4T in the United States.

Gov. Stanford Locomotive at the California State Railroad Museum

On our family’s California vacation, we spent March 15, 1992, exploring the California State Railroad Museum. 

The California State Railroad Museum first opened in 1976 with the reconstructed Central Pacific Railroad Passenger Station, and the Railroad History Museum opened in 1981. Sacramento is a fitting place for the state-operated museum; not only is Sacramento the state capitol, is was also the home of the state’s first railroad in 1856, and was the starting point for the Central Pacific Railroad’s eastward construction of the first transcontinental railroad in 1863.

As I recall, flash photography was not permitted inside the museum, and I don't think my dad brought a flash anyway, so the pictures he took inside the museum did not come out well.

Photo by Cliff West

Central Pacific 4-4-0 locomotive #1, the Gov. Stanford, was the Central Pacific Railroad’s first locomotive. It is named for California Governor Leland Stanford, the first President of the Central Pacific Railroad. It was built in 1862 by R. Norris of Philadelphia. The 40-ton locomotive arrived in Sacramento on October 7, 1863, and made its first run on November 9, 1863.

Photo by Cliff West

The locomotive was downgraded to a switcher in 1873, and was probably renumbered to #212 at the same time. It was renumbered to #1174 in 1891. It made its last run in January 1895 and was retired on July 20, 1895. It was refurbished in 1899 and presented to Stanford’s widow Jane Lathrop Stanford, who in turn donated the locomotive to Leland Stanford Junior University, where it was placed on display from March 1899 until 1963. In May 1963, it was loaned to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, whose collection formed the basis for the California State Railroad Museum.