Logging Railroads of California

Logging Railroads.

A. M. Leach Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Constructed by Andrew Martin Leach to bring timber from the woods to his mill in Challenge. Finished lumber from the mill was then sent by flume down to Honcutt on the Southern Pacific. The railroad was later extended to a new mill at Beantown. In 1892 Leach moved his railroad to the end of the flume at Owl Gulch. Challenge Mills to Beanville, Yuba County. 1884 - 1894

Birce & Smart Lumber Company.
36in Gauge.

Smart Station, Nevada County.

El Dorado Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Acquired the American River Land & Lumber Company railroad from Pino Grande to the log chute on the American river. The El Dorado Lumber Co. invested in the operation and constructed a cable tramway across the river allowing loaded cars to be shipped to a new mill in Camino Camino to Pino Grande, El Dorado County. 1900 - 1911

Michigan - California Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Formed from the merger of the R. E. Danaher Lumber Co. and Michigan lumberman John Blodgett's timber holdings on the Georgetown ridge. The company operated a unique cable tramway over the American river gorge and an expansive mills in Pino Grande and Camino. A fire destroyed the southern tower of the tramway and the operation switched to trucks in 1949. Camino to Pino Grande, El Dorado County. 1918 - 1949

Johnson - Pollock Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Incorporated in 1912 to harvest timber from the northern slope of Mt. Hebron. The company operated several miles of track from Jerome up the mountain and utilized a Shay locomotive. In 1919 the mill at Jerome burned down and the railroad equipment sold to the nearby Mt. Hebron Lumber Company. Jerome, Siskiyou County. 1912 - 1920

Sierra Lumber Company.
39.5in Gauge. Formed through the consolidation of 3 different logging interests, the Sierra Lumber Company constructed and operated several horsedrawn tramways. In 1880 a tramway near Lyonsville was converted to a strap iron railroad and by 1900 the operation was profitable enough to build a second line along Chico Creek. In 1907 the company became part of the Diamond Match Company. Operations Near Lyonsville and Chico Creek. Butte, Tehama and Plumas Counties. 1881 - 1907

Truckee Lumber Company.
42in Gauge.

Truckee, Nevada County.

Towle Brothers Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Constructed during the 1880s the Towle Brothers operated a vast narrow gauge system out of Towle station along the Central Pacific. By the late 1890s the lumber supply began to dwindle and the Towle Bros relocated their operation to Fulda. In 1902 shortly after George Towle's death the family sold the operation to the Reed Lumber Co. of Canada. Towle to a point near Omega, Nevada County. 1885 - 1902

Sloat Lumber Company.
30in Gauge. Constructed from Sloat to the Poplar Valley and Peoria Creek area utilizing second hand equipment from the Empire City Railway. In 1918 the Sloat Lumber Co. and Quincy Lumber Co. were purchased by the F. S. Murphy Lumber Company of Utah. From 1926 to 1936 it was operated as part of the Quincy Lumber Co. Sloat, Plumas County. 1917 - 1936

West Side Lumber Company.
36in Gauge. Reorganized by Michigan businessmen from the Hetch Hetchy & Yosemite Valleys Railroad. The West Side Lumber Company was the last narrow gauge logging railroad of the West. At it's peak the company operated 250 miles of track including 72 miles of mainline. Trucks replaced the railroad in 1961 and operations ceased in 1962. Tuolumne to Camp 44 (Near Cherry Creek), Tuolumne County. 1903 - 1962

W. W. Prather Company.
36in Gauge.

Clear Lake Area, Lake County. 1936 - 1942