South Pacific Coast Railway

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Contributors: John F. Hall;

In May 1887 the South Pacific Coast Railway was formed by a consolidation^[1] of the South Pacific Coast Railroad, the Bay & Coast Railroad, the Oakland Township Railroad, the Santa Cruz & Felton Railroad, the San Francisco and Colorado River Railroad, the Felton & Pescadero Railroad, and the Almaden Branch Railroad for the purpose of transferring the consolidated railroad to new owners. The information on this page is for the Southern Pacific leased line, the 1887-1937 South Pacific Coast Railway.

Brief Description

Corporate History

The South Pacific Coast Railway was formed in May 1887 as a consolidation of the: South Pacific Coast Railroad Company; Bay and Coast Railroad Company; Oakland Township Railroad Company; San Francisco and Colorado River Railroad; Santa Cruz and Felton Railroad Company; Felton and Pescadero Railroad Company; and the Alameda Branch Railroad Company. At the time of consolidation the stockholders of the South Pacfic Coast Railway were: James G. Fair, 44,844 1/2 Shares; Charles S. Neal, 10,048 shares; Alfred E. Davis, 4900 1/2 shares; Charles Stewart, 79 shares; E. J. Coleman, 25 shares; L. B. Benchley, 23 shares; E. J. Swift, 20 shares; R. H. Hall, 20 shares; Henry Skinner, 20 shares; E. J. Cox, 15 shares; S. V. Mooney, 1 share; Seth Cook, 1 share; E. S. Pillsbury, 1 share; V. W. Gaskill, 1 share; and Luther Fillmore,1 share.^[2] A total value of $6,000,000 or 60,000 shares at a par value of $100 each.

The consolidation was made to facilitate the transfer of the South Pacific Coast Railroad and its leased lines to new owners. The new consolidation was debt free. To pay for the transfer to the new owners the South Pacific Coast Railway, right-of-way, rolling stock, track, buildings, etc., was mortgaged for $5,500,000. The mortgage was guaranteed by the Southern Pacific Company. The mortgage company, The Farmers' Loan and Trust Co. of New York, then issued Bonds to the stock holders of the SPCRY. Finally, after an additional cash payment of $500,000 the stock holders then transfered their shares to Leland Stanford, C. P. Huntington, and Charles Crocker.^[3]

On August 1, 1887 a new Board of Directors of the SPCRY was elected. The Directors were Leland Stanford, C. P. Huntington, Charles Crocker, Charles F. Crocker, Timothy Hopkins, W. V. Huntington, and N. T. Smith. Leland Stanford was elected President and Charles F. Crocker Vice-President.^[4] The Board then leased the SPCRY to the Southern Pacific Company.

The Narrow Gauge Years

1887-1908

Conversion to Standard Gauge

1893 - 1908

Crossings

The SPCRwy crossed Southern Pacific railroads five times. At each crossing the South Pacific Coast was required to stop before crossing.

In Oakland

Seventh Street - SPC/SP Double track crossing double track

First Street - SPC/SP Double track crossing double track.

In Alameda

Pacific Avenue - SPC/SP Double track crossing single track

In Santa Clara

Single track crossing SPC/SP

In Santa Cruz

Two single track crossings SPC/SP

The Tunnels

In 1887 a total of ten tunnels existed between Los Gatos and Santa Cruz. In 1893 the Wright's tunnel portal was rebuilt following a massive slide. In 1902 tunnel No. 1, 1.4 miles south of Los Gatos, was day lighted after the third rail was installed to Wright's.^[5]

Locomotives

South Pacific Coast Railway Locomotive Roster

Rolling Stock

Ferryboats

Newark

Bay City

Garden City

Freight boat, tracks on deck

Encinal

Passenger and Freight boat, tracks on deck Ordered by the South Pacific Coast Railroad and delivered to the South Pacific Coast Railway

References

↑ 1 Daily Alta California, May 26, 1887, page 6
↑ Daily Alta California May 25, 1887, page 2
↑ Sacramento Daily Record-Union July 16, 1887, page 4
↑ Daily Alta California August 2, 1887, page 1
↑ Santa Cruz Morning Sentinel February 25, 1903, page1

Reference Material Available Online

Photographs

Collected South Pacific Coast Railroad Photographs. Images collected from private collections, libraries and historical societies.

Maps

The South Pacific Coast Railroad ca. 1886 for Google Earth By John Hall

Trackage

SPC Track Status

South Pacific Coast Track Status Timeline by John Hall.

A timeline of track life, including: construction, service dates and gauge changes.

Color Cards

Color swatches using PMS color representing the paint layers found on the carbody.

Color Card: South Pacific Coast - Coach #39: Body PDF icon 1.48 MB

Color Card: South Pacific Coast - Caboose #47: Body PDF 0.88 MB

Color Card: South Pacific Coast - Coach #42 circa 1904. by Andrew Brandon PDF 0.97 MB Drawn to Southern Pacific Common Standards, using paint samples taken from Coach #39 by Randy Hees, Dimensional Data from Mike Collins and Bruce MacGregor.

Organizations

Society for the Preservation of Carter Railroad Resources. Dedicated to the preservation of equipment built by the Carter Brothers and other car builders of the west coast.