Tidewater Southern Railway facts for kids
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| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Stockton, California |
| Reporting mark | TS |
| Locale | Central California |
| Dates of operation | 1910–1987 |
| Successor | Union Pacific |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Length | 85 miles |
The Tidewater Southern Railway was a special kind of short line railroad in Central California, United States. A short line railroad is a smaller railway that connects to bigger ones. For most of its history, it was owned by the Western Pacific Railroad.
This railway was first built as an interurban system. An interurban railway carries both passengers and freight between cities. It connected with other major railroads like the Central California Traction Company, Western Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific Railroad, and Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway in Stockton, California.
The main line of the Tidewater Southern went southeast from Stockton. It passed through Escalon, California and then reached Modesto, California. From Modesto, it split into two lines, ending at Turlock and Hilmar. There were even plans to extend the line further south to Fresno and the Los Angeles area until the mid-1930s.
Today, much of the old Tidewater Southern line is still used by the Union Pacific Railroad. It's amazing because this former interurban railway still has more of its original tracks in use than almost any other in California!
Contents
How the Tidewater Southern Railway Started
The Tidewater Southern Railway company was officially started in 1910. Building the tracks began in 1911, starting from Stockton. By 1912, trains were running to Modesto. At first, these trains were pulled by steam locomotives and carried passengers.
In 1913, the railway added electricity to its tracks. This was a 1200-volt DC overhead system, meaning electric wires ran above the tracks. After this, electric trains started running regularly every two hours. Besides carrying people, the railway also moved a lot of goods, which is called freight service.
Expanding the Railway Lines
The railway kept growing. In 1916, the line reached Turlock, California. Then, in 1917, it was extended to Hilmar, California. The lines to Turlock and Hilmar separated at a place called Hatch, California. This part of the railway was never electrified, and it only carried freight, not passengers.
In 1918, a new line was built just for freight to Manteca, California. Many people thought this line wasn't electrified. However, records show it did have electric wires and electric locomotives used it.
Becoming Part of the Western Pacific
The Western Pacific Railroad started to have a say in the Tidewater Southern's business as early as 1913. By 1917, the Western Pacific bought most of the Tidewater Southern's shares. After this, the Tidewater Southern was run as a smaller company owned by the Western Pacific.
Changes in Service and Power
Passenger service on the railway stopped in 1932. After that, the Tidewater Southern only carried freight. However, if you really needed a ride, you could sometimes travel in the train's caboose! This unusual situation lasted until the 1960s.
After passenger service ended, most of the electric wires were taken down. But in Modesto, a city rule said that steam locomotives couldn't operate. So, the railway kept 2.1 miles (3.4 km) of electric track in Modesto. They also kept their two special electric locomotives, called steeplecabs. Outside Modesto, all freight trains were pulled by steam locomotives. Sometimes, they even borrowed steam engines from the Western Pacific. In 1940, they got a steam engine from the Sierra Railroad.
Wartime Boom and New Locomotives
During World War II, the Tidewater Southern became very busy. They had to borrow many locomotives from other railways to handle all the extra traffic. This included two Sacramento Northern Railway box motors (which are electric freight engines), several steam locomotives, and some diesel locomotives from the Western Pacific. These were the first diesel engines used on the Tidewater Southern.
After the war, the railway got more diesel locomotives. This meant they could stop using their electric and most of their steam locomotives quickly. Steam trains were still used until the late 1950s, when some bridges were made stronger to hold the heavier diesel engines. The Tidewater Southern's steam engine number 132 was the last one used. It likely pulled the last steam-powered freight train on the entire Western Pacific system in October 1953. In the mid-1950s, the railway also added a small group of modern freight cars. Some of these cars were still in use in the early 1980s.
Losing Independence
From the late 1960s, the Tidewater Southern started to lose its independence. More and more, Western Pacific locomotives and crews operated the trains. Eventually, it became a "paper railroad". This means it was still officially a separate company, but in reality, it was completely run by the Western Pacific.
Even so, the amount of freight it carried continued to grow. Several large grain silos were built near Turlock. These silos needed huge amounts of grain from the Midwest to make animal feed. This meant long "unit trains" (trains made up of many cars carrying the same thing) had to come in. By the late 1970s, these grain trains were the main traffic on the line. This caused problems in Modesto, where the railway ran right down the middle of Ninth Street, a major road. The last locomotives and cabooses with the Tidewater Southern name were retired in late 1976.
The End of the Tidewater Southern Company
Even though the Western Pacific bought most of the Tidewater Southern's shares in 1917, they didn't fully own it until the 1960s. A small part of the company (about 4%) was still owned by private people. The company would send them letters each year about its business.
The Tidewater Southern company officially ended in 1983. This happened when the Union Pacific Railroad took over its parent company, the Western Pacific Railroad. The final merger into the Union Pacific happened in 1986, and the Tidewater Southern company was closed down.
Since 1983, the parts of the Tidewater Southern that are still used are now called the Tidewater Subdivision of the Union Pacific. In 2001, the railway line on Modesto's Ninth Street was removed, splitting the railroad in the middle. Now, the grain trains going to Turlock go around the north end of the old railway. They join the former Tidewater Southern tracks just south of Modesto. The northern part of the line is still used by one train a few times a week. The branch line to Manteca was closed in the early 1990s.
What Kind of Equipment Did Tidewater Southern Use?
The Tidewater Southern Railway only ever owned three electric passenger cars for its interurban service. All of them were built in 1912 by the Jewett Car Company. What was special about them is that they were all "combine cars." This means each car had a section for passengers and a section for freight. The Tidewater Southern was one of the few interurban railways that never had a passenger car just for people. When they needed more space for passengers, they borrowed cars from the Central California Traction Company.
The railway also had two electric locomotives for moving freight. These were called steeplecab electric locomotives because of their shape. One was a standard model from General Electric. The other was built by the Central California Traction Company from an old flatcar!
Old records suggest that Jewett also built a special "express motor" (a type of electric freight engine), but no pictures of it have been found publicly.
The railway owned three steam locomotives. One of them was only used in the very first days of the line.
Later, small diesel locomotives from General Electric replaced the steam and electric engines. These were then replaced by bigger locomotives made by the American Locomotive Company. By the mid-1970s, locomotives from the Western Pacific took over all operations.
Tidewater Southern Locomotives
| Builder | Type | Locomotive Numbers | Built | Years of Service | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central Pacific Railroad | 2-6-2T | 1 (first 1) | 1882 | 1912–1917 | Used when the railway was being built and in its first years. |
| Rome Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1 (second 1) | 1891 | 1918–1946 | Used to belong to the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and then the Western Pacific Railroad. |
| Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-6-2 | 132 (renumbered from 32) | 1923 | 1940–1953 | This was the last steam locomotive to earn money for the Western Pacific system. |
| Central Cal Traction | steeplecab electric | 100 | 1912 | 1914–1948 | Built from an old flatcar. |
| General Electric | steeplecab electric | 106 | 1921 | 1921–1948 | Sold to Sacramento Northern Railway, then taken apart in 1957. |
| General Electric | 44 ton | 135 (renumbered 735) | 1946 | 1946–1967 | Given to the Feather River Rail Society in 2008. |
| General Electric | 70 ton | 141 (renumbered 741) | 1948 | 1948–1964 | |
| General Electric | 70 ton | 142 (renumbered 742) | 1948 | 1948–1967 | |
| General Electric | 70 ton | 743 | 1953 | 1953–1968 | Now owned by the Dakota Southern Railway. |
| American Locomotive Company | S2 | 744 (first 744) | 1949 | 1967–1969 | Used to belong to the Missouri Pacific Railroad. Traded to Western Pacific Railroad for the second 744. |
| American Locomotive Company | S2 | 744 (second 744) | 1943 | 1969–1970 | Used to belong to the Western Pacific. |
| American Locomotive Company | S2 | 745 (first 745) | 1943 | 1967–1970 | Used to belong to the Missouri Pacific. Traded to Western Pacific for the second 745. |
| American Locomotive Company | S2 | 745 (second 745) | 1943 | 1970–1976 | Used to belong to the Western Pacific. This was the last locomotive the railway owned. |
| American Locomotive Company | RS1 | 746 | 1949 | 1970–1976 | Used to belong to the Spokane International Railway. Retired and sold to Central California Traction Company. |
| American Locomotive Company | RS1 | 747 | 1949 | 1970–1975 | Used to belong to the Spokane International. Retired and taken apart. |
When there was a lot of freight to move, the Tidewater Southern would borrow steam engines and later diesel engines from the Western Pacific Railroad. They also borrowed electric freight engines from their sister railways, the Sacramento Northern Railroad and Central California Traction, until the electric lines were removed.
The Tidewater Southern never had its own repair shop for its locomotives and cars. All repairs for the electric passenger cars and electric locomotives were done by the CCT in their shops in Stockton. Repairs for the Tidewater Southern's steam and diesel locomotives, as well as freight cars and cabooses, were done by the Western Pacific.
In the 1950s, the railway built up a good number of freight cars, mostly insulated boxcars. One group of 25 cars had a special symbol called a "Cornucopia" and said "Serving California's Heartland." This symbol was one of the most colorful and detailed ever used by an American railroad, and people still remember it today. One of these cars is kept at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum. Its special symbol has been repainted, carefully by hand, just like the original design.
Where Can You See Tidewater Southern History Today?
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You can find some pieces of the Tidewater Southern's past preserved today:
- Interurban car 200 is stored inside at the Western Railway Museum. It hasn't been restored yet.
- Two of the famous "Cornucopia" freight cars are kept at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola. A former Western Pacific bunk car is also there. This bunk car, TS 0565-H, was used as the train station in Escalon for many years after the original station burned down.
- Caboose 305 is preserved in Modesto. It will eventually be placed in a park that used to be part of the railway line in the northern part of the city.
Several other pieces of equipment still exist:
- Interurban car 202 is now part of a barn on private land near Turlock.
- Caboose 307 is a private home in Oakland.
- Caboose 308 is privately owned and has been fully restored in Modesto.
- A boxcar sits in an industrial yard in Beckwourth, California.
- Locomotive 735 is no longer working and is in Kansas City, Missouri.
- Locomotive 743 is stored and not in use in South Dakota.
- Locomotive 746 is privately owned and no longer working in Willits, California.
The only original train station building that remains is the freight depot in Turlock. The Hotel Stockton also still stands. It used to have offices and a waiting area for the interurban railway on its first floor.
