San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad

Solid line shows rail route from Stockton to Bakersfield.
Hanford station in 1910

The San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad was a California rail line between Stockton and Bakersfield constructed in the late 1890s and very shortly thereafter purchased by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad and became their Valley Division.[1][2]

The impetus for building the line was the monopoly position of the Southern Pacific Railroad, it being thought that a competitor would lower the prices being charged to farmers to ship their crops to San Francisco. Claus Spreckels, a leading sugar manufacturer, pledged $500,000 for the building of the line in January 1895, if $3,000,000 more could be raised. Many small investors contributed funds, giving it the nickname the "People's Railroad".[2] The line was constructed between 1895 and 1898. The first passenger train from Stockton to Fresno ran on October 5, 1896, to great fanfare.[3] Bakersfield also held a big celebration when it was reached on May 27, 1898. In both cases, news reports trumpeted how the towns were now free of the "tyranny" of Southern Pacific's monopoly.[2][4]

The quick sale to the Santa Fe before the end of 1898[5][6] disappointed many, but many backers believed combining with a larger partner was key to the line's success.[7]

The line still exists today as BNSF's Stockton Subdivision from Richmond to Fresno, and as the Bakersfield Subdivision from Fresno to Bakersfield. The San Joaquins runs along this route.

Stations

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Stations from north to south included the following stops:[8]

References

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  1. ^ Walker's Manual of Far Western Corporations & Securities, Volume 5, Part 1913, p. 183
  2. ^ a b c Hooper, Ken (26 December 2014). History: Bakersfield freed from railroad tyranny, The Bakersfield Californian
  3. ^ (6 October 1896). Fresno Freed From Monopoly's Shackles, San Francisco Call
  4. ^ (28 May 1898). Bakerfield Freed From Tyranny, San Francisco Call
  5. ^ (10 December 1898). Valley Road Deal, Los Angeles Herald
  6. ^ (20 October 1898). Confirmed Again, Los Angeles Herald
  7. ^ Daggett, Stuart. Chapters on the history of the Southern Pacific, pp. 317-45 (1966)
  8. ^ Timetable, Railroad Gazetteer (April 1899), p. 27
  9. ^ Gudde, Erwin G. California Place Names, p. 186 (1922)
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