Re: Lines "East of Sparks"

From: "Larry Mullaly" lmullaly@jeffnet.org

Kyle,

Thank you for the clarification. Apparently the "Calvin lines" did not include Sparks east. For what it is worth, my chart showing a circa 1910 snapshot of Harriman lines shows the following operating units:

"Operating Organization of the Union Pacific and Southern Pacific Systems"

"Oregon and Washington Railroad Under Construction"

"Union Pacific Railroad 3098 miles"

"Oregon Short Line and Southern Pacific Lines East of Sparks Nevada 2472 miles"

"Oregon R & Navigation Company and Southern Pacific Co. North of Ashland 1903 miles"

"Southern Pacific Company Lines Between Sparks Nevada, Ashland Oregon and Rio Grande New Mexico 4433 - 248 (?) miles

"Separately Operated Lines in Louisiana 565 miles"

"Separately Operated Lines in Arizona and New Mexico 847 miles"

"Atlantic Coast Steamship Line 4400 miles of water lines"

Differing from Kyle's list is the absence of the SP, LA & SL. Looking through Signor's history of the Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad Company, I see no compelling reason why this line would not have been treated as a separate operating unit of the "Harriman lines" in 1910.

Larry

Re: Lines "East of Sparks"

Union Pacific had several operating entities in the Harriman era. I believe they can briefly be described as follows:

Union Pacific RR (east from Ogden)
Oregon Short Line (north and west from Ogden - to the Oregon border)
Oregon Ry & Navigation (in Oregon and Washington)
San Pedro, Los Angeles & Salt Lake (south from Ogden - under OSL during early construction)
(Plus others not relevant here)

It was actually through OSL that Harriman purchased the controlling interest of Southern Pacific Company stock.

Sounds like Harriman put operating control of several parts of SP under nearby UP affiliates. Calvin sounds like the OR&N man. I'm guessing someone else had OSL.

Knowing that OSL operated the SP in Nevada, it makes more sense that OSL built the line down from Idaho during these years. I suspect it became sort of an orphan after SP and UP were separated.

Kyle

Note my NEW address of kwyatt@parks.ca.gov

Kyle K. Wyatt
Curator of History & Technology
California State Railroad Museum

Lines "East of Sparks"

From: "Larry Mullaly" lmullaly@jeffnet.org

I found some additional information about the redesign of the Harriman lines in Oregon and Utah.

"Ashland Tidings, March 31, 1904.
The change in the office of general manager of the Southern Pacific lines in Oregon, whereby R. Koehler retired and EE Calvin becomes his successor, will go into effect tomorrow, April 1st as will be noted in the following circular which has been posted in the local [Ashland] dispatcher’s office: ‘Effective this date, all officers and employees of the lines in Oregon, north of Ashland, will report to Mr. E. E. Calvin, general manger of the Oregon Railroad & Navigation Company, at Portland. Signed J. Kruttschnitt.’ ….EE Calvin, who tomorrow assumed the general management of the O.R. & N. , including the SP lines in Oregon started in as a railroad official on the Oregon Short Line in Idaho, when it was a part of the Union Pacific system, before its segregation as an independent road."

On April 4, Calvin was reported in the Ashland Tidings as having stated:
"Mr. Koehler will retain his position as general manager of the Southern Pacific and will have the same authority as he ahs had in the past. The only difference is he will report to headquarters through my office instead of through the office at San Francisco."

Dale Darney’s quote seems to represent a second phase of the restructuring the Oregon/Idaho/Utah portion of the Harriman system. This operating unit became popularly known as the "Calvin Lines." To repeat Dale’s quote:

"SEPTEMBER 2 1905 Sparks Dispatch
Yesterday the Southern Pacific line from Sparks eastward and all the lines of the Nevada & California, formerly the C.& C. Passed under the control of the Oregon Short Line to the officials of which the employees of the roads affected by J. G. Stubbs, traffic manager of the Harriman system."

The 1905 change at some point was joined with the other lines in Oregon. A 1910 book in my possession, "Railroad Administration" by Ray Morris. This contains an organizational chart (p. 56) showing the "Oregon Short Line and Southern Pacific Lines East of Sparks 2472 miles" as under the direction of a single Vice President and General Manager (EE Calvin, I assume).

Larry

correct history

From: "Lynn Farrar" littlechoochoo81@netzero.net

... places which have or had pertinent material on CP/SP lines (not in order):

CSRM Sacramento, CA
Huntington Library San Marino, CA
Bancroft Library Berkeley, CA
Stanford Business Library Palo Alto, CA mostly for lines west of El Paso
Syracuse Library Syracuse, NY CPH mss
Mariner's Museum Newport News, VA Letters to C.P. Huntington
Nevada Historical Society Reno, NV
Oregon Historical Society Portland, OR
(Pacific Electric Group) Riverside County, CA somewhere - address not known by me
Degolyer Library Ft. Worth/Dallas area for lines east of El Paso
John R. Signor Dunsmuir, CA (author, etc)
National Archives formerly Suitland, MD, now west of there ICC records of 1913 valuations

Best I can do for now. Lynn

[Links added.]

RE: CP/SP Coal History

It's also important to remember that CP was burning coal in furnaces other than locomotive fireboxes...there would be foundry hearths, ferry boats' boilers, stoves galore in coaches, dining car galleys, depots, offices, cabooses...this surely would affect the total report on such a large railroad and industry. Were they also including subsidiaries in that report, or were those separately recorded?

There are two reasons for believing that the figures represent locomotive fuel only: 1) The table is titled "Statement exhibiting fuel for locomotive fuel . . ." and 2) there are railroads listed which list no coal, which–as you point out–must have used coal in non locomotive applications.

It is not clear just what is included under any railroad's name; however, I take it to mean system wide. In many other of the tables Central Pacific's own line is distinguished from leased lines (Amador Brnch, Berkeley Branch, California Pacific, LA and Independence, La and San Diego, Northern Ry, Stockton & Copperopolis, San Pablo and Tulare, and Southern Pacific of Arizona) and controlled line (Sacramento & Placerville). Southern Pacific RR Co is given its own entry. So, whoever was putting this together certainly knew there were a number of parts that went into the CP. Now under fuel, there is a different entry for SP of Arizona, but I don't have an entry for SP itself. These tables are divided geographically and at the time I was making copies I was interested primarily in the Sacramento & Placerville so simply did not copy everything.

This document–often called the 1880 Railroad census–is readily available in federal publican libraries. It tells you what material they used for ties and fences, rail, etc, mileage, number of employees; in short just about everything you might want to know (no rosters, just totals) except for the color of their equipment!

Wendell