South Pacific Coast Railroad

South Pacific Coast Railroad
Overview
HeadquartersNewark, California
Reporting markSPC
LocaleCalifornia's San Francisco Bay Area
Dates of operationMarch 29, 1876–July 1, 1887 (independent company); June 4, 1940 (Los Gatos - Olympia); Present (Los Gatos - San Leandro Bay)
SuccessorsSouth Pacific Coast Railway
Southern Pacific Transportation Company
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge after 1909
Previous gauge3 ft (914 mm)
Length77.5 miles (124.7 km)
Route map

San Francisco
Alameda Mole
Park Street
High Street
Alameda tidal canal
West San Leandro
West San Lorenzo
Russels
Mt. Eden
Alvarado
Halls
Newark
Centerville
Mowry's
Drawbridge
Alviso
Agnew's
Santa Clara
San Jose
Campbell
Los Gatos & San Jose Road
Union Avenue
Le Frances
Guadaloupe
Almaden Crossing
New Almaden
Vasona Junction
Los Gatos
Old Tunnel #1
Alma
Wrights
Laurel
Laurel Tunnel (#2)
Glenwood
Mountain Charlie Tunnel (#3)
Zayante
Zayante Tunnel (#4)
Boulder Creek
Filbert
Ben Lomond
Felton
Big Trees
Rincon Tunnel (#5)
Rincon
Hogsback Tunnel (old #7)
Mission Hill Tunnel (#6)
Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz Beach

The South Pacific Coast Railroad (SPC) was a 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge steam railroad running between Santa Cruz, California, and Alameda, with a ferry connection in Alameda to San Francisco. The railroad was created as the Santa Clara Valley Railroad, founded by local strawberry growers as a way to get their crops to market in San Francisco and provide an alternative to the Southern Pacific Railroad. In 1876, James Graham Fair, a Comstock Lode silver baron, bought the line and extended it into the Santa Cruz Mountains to capture the significant lumber traffic coming out of the redwood forests. The narrow-gauge line was originally laid with 52-pound-per-yard (26 kg/m) rail on 8-foot (2.44 m) redwood ties;[1] and was later acquired by the Southern Pacific and converted to 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge.

  1. ^ White, John H. Jr. (1975). "A Trip on the South Pacific Coast in 1882". Railroad History. 132 (Spring 1975). The Railway & Locomotive Historical Society: 87&92. JSTOR 43520522.