Tickets Please All About California Railroads Eargle SC

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Introduction

For me, it all started when I was four years old. My father hoisted me up into the cab of a hissing black giant, a locomotive on the relatively short, twenty-eight-mile-long Lancaster & Chester (South Carolina) Railroad. The owner of this road was the legendary Leroy Springs, of "Springmaid" fabrics. Springs was known to frequent meetings of railroad barons, where his presence drew many snide remarks. Allegedly, he waved them off with, "My railroad might not be as long as yours, but it's just as wide!" A true railfan.

Powerful impressions made early in life that are repeated periodically are often highly influential in setting the direction of later energies. To live next to a railroad for years, as I did: to ride streetcars as a diversion, as I did: to make long rail journeys occasionally, as I did - are experiences that provide strong reasons for becoming a railfan. These experiences are, at first, part entertainment, part necessity for transportation, and part environmental. But subtly, over time, the fascination with trains for their own sake takes over.

Several years ago, as a newcomer to San Francisco, while out on a Sunday drive, I spotted the distant but unmistakable outlines of big, black locomotives parked in a field near the Richmond Bridge. I was in ecstasy! I had to get closer. The fact that I had to unravel the maze of roads to reach the site only heightened my excitement. At last, I found the Castro Point Railway's shops, yards. and yes, even the hissing black giants like those I'd known as a child. The experience was every bit as wonderful as I'd hoped.

I wanted to explore more of California's railroad treasures. How could I find them? Alas, no rail guide existed - so it was up to me. I then started my campaign of tracking down tracks.

I'm well aware that some of you may find all this railroad interest prosaic, just another way to get from here to there. But I suspect that deep down, everyone is moved and exhilarated by a train's click-clack, its gentle sway, its straining motor moving tons in a smooth glide.

For a long time, I thought it was enough to enthusiastically accept whatever rail adventure happened by. But eventually I stopped being a passive passenger and deliberately set out to find "new" railroads. I wanted to experience that sense of history, that fragrance of nostalgia, that great, mechanical power that moves tons of weight so sleekly.

Ever since Peter Cooper put his "Tom Thumb" on two bands of steel in Baltimore in 1830, railroads have fascinated the nation. For some people, railroads- with their hissing, their belching smoke, their screeching motors and engines, their awesome controlled power, and their huge parts moving right in front of our eyes - appeal to all the senses. Trucks, buses, boats, and planes, with their covered out-of-sight motors, can go almost anywhere and be seen everywhere. But a train is almost a rarity: it is constrained to move neatly on a pre-set course. Why do we get such a kick out of model trains? Maybe because they go only where we want them to, not willy-nilly over house or yard.

What can be said about the person with that inexplicable zeal to seek out yet another rail experience - the choo-choo junkie? For me, as for most rail fans, the real reason cannot be pinned down or explained. I only know that some strange drive impels me to search for a new set of tracks to marvel over.

Recently I visited the California Railroad Museum near Rio Vista. The yards were crawling with people, all dedicated to restoring and noting every detail of old locomotives and interurban trains. I spent quite a few hours there, chatting with the other aficionados - and in all that time, not one of us questioned why we were interested in this particular antique mania.

Railroads have always had a spotted reputation. They have made both covert and ill-concealed demands on the public and its treasury. Their leaders have more often than not been greedy and insensitive. In spite of all this, the same put-upon public still appreciates that railroads are necessary - and more, that they beckon our sense of adventure, that they don't simply transport us and our goods but also offer us a delighted state of mind. Not long ago. Senator Lowell Weickert of Connecticut defended assaults on Amtrak by saying, "Rails are an idea whose time has come." Let's hope so.

A few words about this guidebook: initially, I set out to explore the railroads of 1 California, both past and present, for my sake only; but after 1 made a few discoveries, I realized that this information should be shared with other railfans, both present and future. Although the act of searching out these railroads is great sport in itself, it's helpful to have some sort of guide to start off with - especially for those who are unfamiliar with California railroading.

This guide is intended for both the casual railrider and the serious railfan. Recreational railriders will find within these pages something to ride or to observe in almost 1 every part of the state. And although many experienced students of railroads probably already know about most of the information contained here, they still may find useful the new information on the up-to-date holdings and status of some lines.

Part of my purpose here, as with all guidebooks, is to help the reader enjoy the many facets of railroading more fully. To that end, I have abbreviated many histories, accounts, and even schedules and fares. Those of you who want to examine these subjects in further detail might search out more particulars on the site itself, consult several of the books and publications listed in the bibliography, or pay a visit to some of the bookstores listed.

Even over the short period of time that exists between this writing and your reading, some change is inevitable. Although all the schedules, fares, and equipment holdings given here are as up-to-date as possible as of mid-1978, they are, of course, subject to change. For any number of reasons, including excursion lines and some miniatures may partially or totally cease operations overnight. And since railroad engines and cars are highly mobile, and since they constantly are being bought, sold, and transferred, they just might not be found at the sites reported in this guide.

The information you find here comes from a large variety of sources - personal observation, some remarkable books, pamphlets, booklets, brochures, and maps; and interviews with railroad personnel, from official representatives to trackworkers. In my desire to make this guide as historically accurate as possible, I have tried to cross-check all data; but since occasionally I have had to rely solely upon the (sometimes fallible) memory of various human beings, there may be a few errors or tall tales, know that there must be things I have missed; suspect that some factual mistakes have crept in. Therefore, I would be pleased if the many knowledgeable railfans reading this guide would "blow the whistle" on me and help correct and amend the data for future editions.

So for all of you who wish to experience the pleasure of riding over steel rails on steel wheels, and for those of you who are interested in a rich and complex aspect of California's historical past, present, and future - welcome aboard!

All pictures are of the actual item. If this is a railroad item, this material is obsolete and no longer in use by the railroad. Please email with questions. Publishers of Train Shed Cyclopedias and Stephans Railroad Directories. Large inventory of railroad books and magazines. Thank you for buying from us.

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