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51-604: Founded in 1961 as Pacific News (ISSN 0030-879X), by the Pacific Locomotive Association , from its inception the magazine was originally published monthly by Chatham Publishing Company (of Burlingame, California), Karl R. Koenig, editor and publisher. Issue number 1 was published in September 1961. By the third issue the magazine was independent and not produced by the Association. Pacific News

102-704: A district within the city of Fremont . Likewise, Alameda Cañon thereafter became known as Niles Canyon . When built, the rail line through Niles Canyon was the primary route for overland traffic to and from the San Francisco Bay. A shorter rail line between Oakland and Sacramento was established via the California Pacific Railroad and a train ferry at Benicia by 1879. As a result, the original line became less used due to its longer route and its steep grade over Livermore Pass (known today as Altamont Pass). Passenger and freight trains on

153-707: A few cars switched off at the San Jose Junction for San Jose and Gilroy. This opening of a transcontinental railroad to the Pacific coast, as envisioned by the 1862 Pacific Railroad Act, came four months after the Central Pacific and Union Pacific met at Promontory Summit, Utah . On November 8, 1869, the intended western terminus opened at the Oakland Long Wharf , from which ferries connected to San Francisco. These ferries continued to be

204-665: A joint operation with the Key System , which used the railroad for its streetcars to reach the Richmond-San Rafael Ferry terminal. Quarry Products leased the railroad to the PLA for one dollar per year. As other historic locomotives and cars were acquired, they were moved to the Castro Point Railway. An agreement was reached in 1973 to use trackage in the adjoining Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot for

255-660: A single caboose to an entire train. During the Christmas period, special "Train of Lights" trips run. Passengers may board at the western end of the line in Fremont, at the Niles station site adjacent to the Union Pacific Coast Line on which Amtrak operates their Capitol Corridor service. The unrelated Niles Depot Museum displays model railroads and railroad artifacts nearby. Passengers may also board at

306-426: A terminal where PLA's equipment could be stored and maintained. Over the years, eleven steam locomotives and ten internal combustion locomotives, plus more than 35 passenger and freight cars, have been added to PLA's historic collection. Many of these were restored to active status and operated over the Castro Point Railway. This operating railroad museum began in 1969, and ran for the public until December, 1985, when

357-775: Is a heritage railway running on the first transcontinental railroad alignment (1866, 1869) through Niles Canyon , between Sunol and the Niles district of Fremont in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area , in California , United States. The railway is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Niles Canyon Transcontinental Railroad Historic District. The railroad

408-649: Is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the physical aspects and atmosphere of Pacific Coast railroading during the period from 1910 to 1960. The Pacific Locomotive Association operates the Niles Canyon Railway , and has railroad artifacts on display in the Niles Depot Museum in Fremont, California . It also owns a collection of locomotives and other railroad cars , with restorations complete or in progress. The PLA

459-426: Is accomplished by PLA volunteer members. Activities vary from simple tasks requiring no experience, to working as a skilled mechanical technician, locomotive engineer or other member of a train crew. 37°35′52″N 121°55′05″W  /  37.597804°N 121.917918°W  / 37.597804; -121.917918 Niles Canyon Railway Distance from San Francisco The Niles Canyon Railway ( NCRy )

510-488: Is operated and maintained by the Pacific Locomotive Association which preserves, restores and operates historic railroad equipment. The NCRy features public excursions with both steam and diesel locomotives along a well-preserved portion of the first transcontinental railroad . The Niles Canyon Railway operates along a portion of the First transcontinental railroad constructed in the 1860s. The rail line through Niles Canyon

561-543: The U.S. Navy , concerned about security, canceled the agreement. As operations were coming to an end at Castro Point, the Southern Pacific Railroad was in the process of ending service on its line through Niles Canyon and over Altamont Pass , transferring its right-of-way to Alameda County after removal of the track. The County agreed to lease the Niles Canyon portion of the right-of-way to

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612-472: The "Interurbans" column were combined into a single, smaller news section for rail transit, and other sections of the magazine were also reorganized at that time. The magazine was expanded from 48 pages to 56 pages in January 1990. Pentrex 's acquisition of PRN in 1993 eventually led to other format changes. Starting in January 1995, most issues had 82 pages, and the word "Pacific" was made much smaller than

663-552: The 1884 Sunol depot, which is the last surviving example of a Southern Pacific standard Combination Depot #7. Future plans for restoration of the historic Sunol Depot include interpretive educational displays. The Pacific Locomotive Association has, as of 2022, 10 steam and 13 diesel locomotives, and over 40 pieces of rolling stock. There have been many visitors over the years. Previously, the Golden Gate Railroad Museum moved its collection from San Francisco to

714-718: The NCRy in 2007 for storage and limited operations after their home at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard was shut down for redevelopment. The Golden Gate Railroad Museum announced their departure from the Niles Canyon Railway in Spring 2015, and moved three locomotives to the Northwestern Pacific Railroad in March 2020. In July 2021, plans were announced to move Southern Pacific steam locomotive 2479 ,

765-634: The National Register of Historic Places as the Niles Canyon Transcontinental Railroad Historic District on October 13, 2010. The railway was determined to be eligible under National Register Criterion C to reflect the engineering significance of the resources as fine examples of historic period railroad design, and under Criterion A to reflect its association with the construction of the Original Transcontinental Railroad and its role as an important freight railway in

816-657: The PLA as a new home for the PLA’s collection and operations. Volunteer PLA members began relaying the track with some rail donated by both the Southern Pacific and Union Pacific Railroad . The first section, between Sunol and Brightside, was opened using California Western "Skunk" M200 on May 21, 1988. Between 1988 and 1994, track laying through the Canyon continued to Vallejo Mill Park , just short of Niles. Rails were extended to downtown Niles on September 19, 1998. Today

867-407: The PLA operates the NCRy, a seven-mile railroad through the well-preserved and scenic Niles Canyon, and tens of thousands of people visit the railroad annually. Track reconstruction presently continues to the east along the five miles of right-of-way available between Sunol and Pleasanton. Today, the PLA has over 1000 members and contributing sponsors. A variety of railroad activities are available to

918-408: The PLA two additional steam locomotives; No. 5, a rare three-truck Heisler locomotive, and No. 12, the oldest standard gauge three-truck Shay locomotive known to exist. By 1967, the previously mentioned Blake Brothers quarry railroad, then owned by Quarry Products, Inc., had ceased rail operations at Point Richmond. Originally known as the Castro Point Railway and Terminal Co., this railroad had been

969-491: The PLA. The PLA news bulletin, sent to members each month, grew into a full-fledged railroad news magazine. Single issues and subscriptions to PLA's Pacific News were sold as a fund raiser. They were initially written, edited and produced by Karl R. Koenig on a Ditto machine , but as demand increased it eventually became cost-effective to use a professional printer. The magazine was eventually spun off and published independently, by Chatham Publishing Company until 1983 when it

1020-616: The San Francisco Peninsula and produce from the Santa Clara and Salinas Valleys traveled through the canyon to points east. Despite these improvements, the few rebuilding programs by the railroad left the Niles Canyon line with many of its original cut-stone bridge abutments, culverts, and retaining walls from the Western Pacific 's original right of way. Many of these stonework built by Chinese laborers in

1071-522: The Western Pacific and Oakland Point in 1868, restarted work on the railroad line through Alameda Cañon in two opposite directions, both using Chinese laborers. In June 1869, J. H. Strobridge and crew began to lay out a new line starting at a point on the 1866 Western Pacific rails in the west end of Alameda Cañon (San Jose Junction at MP 30.6) westward out of the canyon towards Oakland, while Turton, Knox & Ryan dispatched workers to continue

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1122-811: The early part of the 20th century. The Period of Significance was identified as spanning from 1865 to 1958. This period was chosen to encompass the commencement of construction of this portion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1865 to the end of its significance as a major transportation corridor after World War II and the final incorporation of the Central Pacific Railroad into the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1958. The historic district includes 108 contributing resources and 39 non-contributing resources. Contributing resources consist of every object within

1173-423: The final link for passengers to San Francisco until 1958. At the mouth of Alameda Cañon was Vallejo Mills and the San Jose Junction (MP 30.6) was located about a mile east, inside the narrow confines of the cañon. In 1870 a connector was built just west of Vallejo Mills on the 1869 Central Pacific line to Oakland , connecting it to the original 1866 Western Pacific line to San Jose . At the junction (MP 29.2) in

1224-610: The first Western Pacific Railroad (1862-1870) (not related to the later company of same name) to build the westernmost portion of the line connecting the Central Pacific in Sacramento to San Jose via Stockton and Livermore . Trains could then continue to San Francisco via the San Francisco & San Jose Rail Road which was completed in 1864. By 1866, the Western Pacific had built 20 miles (32 km) of track north and east from San Jose, reaching halfway into what

1275-566: The first field trip featured engine No. 6, the present PLA logo is in the form of a locomotive's number plate with '6' in the center. In 1962 two trips open to the public were sponsored over the California Western Railroad . The first was from Ft. Bragg to Willits and return in August, using the railroad's M200 "Skunk". This trip sold out quickly, so it was repeated a month later. Round-trip fare, including coffee and donuts,

1326-525: The following: The railway's 2013 regular scheduled excursions run on the first and third Sundays each month in January–March and September–October; first and third Saturday and Sunday each month, April–August. Several trips are run, generally alternating between steam locomotives and diesel locomotives , with both open and enclosed passenger cars. See the railway's website for exact schedules and for special trains. Group charters are also available, from

1377-546: The group dug out the rails which had been buried by years of quarry dust. The formal organization of the Pacific Locomotive Association took place at Burlingame, California , in July, 1961. The original members were Charles Heimerdinger, Jr., Karl R. Koenig, Henry Luna, Thomas Eikrenkotter, Bart Gregg and Robert Field. Henry Luna was elected as the first president. As there were six charter members, and

1428-469: The late 1860s can still be seen today. The decline in San Francisco's status as a port with the advent of containerization , combined with the movement of produce traffic to the highways once again left the railroad through Niles Canyon with little business. Southern Pacific ceased its operations through the canyon in 1984, and deeded the land to Alameda County ; the portion over Altamont Pass

1479-549: The line was reduced to local service only. This secondary status was maintained until the early 20th century when the Southern Pacific Railroad (successor to the Central Pacific) came under the leadership of E. H. Harriman . Freight traffic in and out of San Francisco had become too heavy for the ferries across the bay and across the Carquinez Strait to handle. An all land route via San Jose and Niles Canyon

1530-508: The magazine. As of 1992, when Interurban Press was publishing the magazine, PRN had a circulation of about 10,000 and subscribers all over the world. In 1993, Mac Sebree , publisher of PRN and owner of Interurban Press, retired and sold the entire business to Pentrex . Pentrex took over both PRN and Passenger Train Journal (PTJ) from Interurban Press, but discontinued PTJ in late 1996. The geographic coverage of Pacific RailNews

1581-517: The membership. Some enjoy rail trips to unusual destinations. Others take pleasure from the social aspect, attending the monthly meetings, special barbecues , events and dinners. While others take an interest in preserving railroad history, whether through research, writing, photography or working on the Niles Canyon Railway, still others, not living near the Bay Area, take pride in the continuous improvements and expansion by making contributions to help

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1632-540: The museum grow. The PLA has continued to operate public excursions over most of California's railroads, including the Sierra, Santa Fe, McCloud and the Union Pacific. Other rail trips have taken members across Canada and as far as Ecuador, Chile, Cuba and China. At Niles Canyon, all restoration, expansion and preservation work, including track building and maintenance work on locomotives, rail cars, buildings, etc.,

1683-448: The news coverage was separated by railroad company (e.g., Rio Grande , Southern Pacific , Amtrak ), with a regular columnist for each, but at the front of each issue there was also a general news section for national, miscellaneous or last-minute news. A "Short Lines" column covered the short-line railroads . Until 1989, coverage of urban rail transit was also presented in the form of regular locally compiled news columns covering

1734-467: The railroad in Alameda Cañon eastward from the point where the 1866 Western Pacific rails abruptly stopped. Four major timber through (Howe) truss bridges were built to cross Alameda Creek and Arroyo de la Laguna Creek. In addition to building wooden bridges and grading the railroad bed, the laborers built culverts, retaining walls, and bridge piers in masonry. By mid-August 1869, the railroad

1785-436: The railroad's right of way constructed between 1865 and 1958. These include the track itself, the graded roadbed, culverts, bridges, signals, telegraph and signal pole lines, structures, signs, and fences. Non-contributing resources consist of things built or altered since 1958, and include non-historic track, buildings, a gas pipeline, and a fiber optic line. The primary contributing resources of this Historic District include

1836-499: The then-few light rail systems in the West Coast states, supplemented at the back of the magazine by a separate one-page column (by publisher Mac Sebree) giving briefer rail-transit news on the rest of the country; the latter was called "Interurbans Newsletter" in tribute to a previous newsletter which had given birth to Interurban Press , PRN' s publisher. In fall 1989, the individual columns on west coast light rail systems and

1887-561: The track in 1987. The Niles Canyon Railway ran its first passenger train from Sunol on May 21, 1988. Passenger trains once again connected Sunol and Niles starting on April 9, 2006. The organization continues its work to extend and maintain the track along the line; restore its collection of railroad equipment; and operate historic demonstration trains for the benefit of the public. They plan to eventually extend their demonstration train service to Pleasanton, California . The railway, its right-of-way , and its associated structures were listed on

1938-613: The valley, Central Pacific added a roundhouse and a train depot, complete with a restaurant and saloon for the convenience of the train passengers transferring there. Meanwhile, in 1869 Central Pacific renamed the station for their railroad attorney and stockholder, Addison Niles , who later became associate justice on the California Supreme Court . Shortly thereafter, the Vallejo Mills settlement around MP 29.2 became known as Niles , which has become since 1956

1989-570: The words "RailNews" on the cover. "Pacific" was dropped altogether from the magazine's name in 1997, as coverage was expanded to include the Eastern U.S. Along with the magazine's size, the proportion of photos and maps published in color also had been increasing, and by 1997 the only black-and-white images in the magazine were the occasional historical photo that had been shot on black-and-white film originally. Pacific Locomotive Association The Pacific Locomotive Association, Inc. ( PLA )

2040-473: Was $ 6.35. The historic M200, built in 1926, was later purchased by PLA to save it from being scrapped, and now operates regularly on the Niles Canyon Railway . In the mid 1990s a group of current and former Southern Pacific employees operating an organization known as "Project 2467 Inc." with the goal of restoring and maintaining former Southern Pacific steam locomotive number 2467 merged into

2091-480: Was a May 1961 visit to the Howard Terminal Railway, and featured their last steam locomotive, No. 6. Shortly afterward, this steam engine was officially retired. Three members purchased this engine for $ 250 from Peter and Harmon Howard, on the condition that 'the engine never be scrapped'. Thus No. 6 became the first artifact of railroad history to be preserved by the PLA. The bell of the locomotive

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2142-701: Was amongst the earliest to be built in California and provided the first rail connection between San Francisco Bay and the rest of the nation. The Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 authorized the Central Pacific Railroad and the Union Pacific Railroad to build the transcontinental railroad between the Missouri River and the waters of the Pacific. For various reasons, the Central Pacific Railroad reached an agreement with

2193-538: Was available, but was overly circuitous. Several major capital improvement projects undertaken during this era, including the completion of the Coast Line and the construction of the Dumbarton Bridge , revitalized the original line through Niles Canyon. Steel bridges replaced the covered timber bridges at Farwell and Dresser and the small railroad town of Niles became an important junction as freight from

2244-510: Was briefly reopened in 1985 for "scab trains" to train management crews ahead of a possible union strike. Commercial rail operations through Niles Canyon now operate on a newer line, which is owned by Union Pacific (formerly Western Pacific ) and also used by the Altamont Corridor Express (ACE) commuter train . The Pacific Locomotive Association leased the right of way from the county and began working to reconstruct

2295-495: Was completed through Alameda Cañon eastward to Pleasanton and into Livermore Valley . In September 1869, the railroad from Sacramento through Alameda Cañon to the waterfront Alameda Terminal at San Francisco Bay was completed. According to the Daily Alta California , the first Western Pacific train ran from Sacramento through the canyon on September 6, 1869, to a cheering crowd at Alameda Terminal , while

2346-470: Was expanded to include all major U.S. railroads, rather than just those in the West and Midwest , and effective January 1997 the magazine's name became RailNews (ISSN 1091-2436). Pentrex eventually decided to discontinue publication of all of its magazines, and the final issue of RailNews was that dated August 1999. Each issue of PRN had feature articles and several pages of news. Under Interurban Press,

2397-442: Was formed by six people from the San Francisco Peninsula in 1961. Prompted to take action by the recent demise of mainline steam railroading, the PLA was established to promote passenger excursion trains featuring unique and unusual locations and equipment. They also hoped to preserve elements of the steam era for future generations. Two of the PLA's first trips set the stage for the organization's early activities. The first of these

2448-498: Was not part of the sale but was kept by Peter Howard for a number of years. He then gave it to the PLA gratis. A second field trip was held the following month. This trip featured the Blake Brothers rail operation on the shore of San Francisco Bay at Point Molate, near the eastern end of Richmond-San Rafael Bridge. Their two-truck Heisler locomotive was operated over the railroad after many years of storage, but only after

2499-648: Was originally printed on uncoated paper, but coated paper was used starting with issue 32. The magazine was acquired by Interurban Press in 1983, and the October 1983 issue was the first under the new publisher. Publication was then bimonthly for a time, but returned to being monthly in December 1984. Starting with the October 1984 issue, the name was changed to Pacific RailNews (also informally written Pacific Rail News ) (ISSN 8750-8486), so as to more clearly indicate its subject area to anyone not yet familiar with

2550-433: Was sold to Interurban Press (and later Pentrex ). The name was later changed to Pacific RailNews and, with expanded coverage and national distribution, it was later shortened to its final name, Rail News . Although successful for many years the magazine was discontinued by Pentrex in 1999. In 1965 two other steam locomotives became available for preservation. A donation by Connell Brothers Trucking of Stockton gave

2601-404: Was then known as Alameda Cañon , to about Farwell near milepost 33. The Western Pacific used 500 Chinese laborers to grade and construct the rail line into the rugged canyon with its tight curves and narrow banks. Construction was then halted because of disagreements between the railroad's contractors and its financiers. In 1869, the Central Pacific Railroad , a subsidiary of which had acquired

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