Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway

In this postcard image, one of the railroad's Shay locomotives works its way up Mount Tamalpais. Note the railroad's practice of pushing trains upgrade, with the engine reversed at the rear of the train.
Share of the Mt. Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway dated May 1, 1921

The Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway was a scenic tourist railway operating between Mill Valley and the east peak of Mount Tamalpais in Marin County, California, covering a distance of 8.19 miles (13.18 km), with a 2.88-mile (4.63 km) spur line to the Muir Woods.[1] The railroad was incorporated in January 1896, and closed in the summer of 1930.[2][page needed] Originally planned as a 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge electric trolley line, the railroad was powered by a succession of geared steam locomotives.[3] Billed as the "Crookedest Railroad in the World", the line was renowned for its steep and serpentine route, winding through picturesque terrain to a mountaintop tavern providing first-class hospitality and panoramic views of the San Francisco Bay Area.[4] Despite its popularity, the railway met its demise following a fire in 1929,[5] and dwindling ridership when the automobile could finally drive to Tamalpais' summit.[6]

  1. ^ Sievers, Walt (1952). "Mt. Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railway". The Western Railroader. 14 (136). Francis A. Guido: 3–15.
  2. ^ Wurm & Graves 1954.
  3. ^ Wurm & Graves 1954, p. 21.
  4. ^ Wurm & Graves 1954, p. 12.
  5. ^ Runner 2009, p. 119.
  6. ^ Runner 2009, p. 105.