The Santa Maria Valley Railroad is a

shortline railroad :''Short Line is also one of the four railroads in the American version of the popular board game Monopoly, named after the Shore Fast Line, an interurban streetcar line.'' A shortline railroad is a small or mid-sized railroad company that opera ...

that

interchanges Interchange may refer to: Transport * Interchange (road), a collection of ramps, exits, and entrances between two or more highways * Interchange (freight rail), the transfer of freight cars between railroad companies * Interchange station, a rai ...

with the Union Pacific Railroad's (former

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

) Coast Line at

Guadalupe, California Guadalupe is a small city located in Santa Barbara County, California. According to the U.S. Census of 2010, the city has a population of 7,080. Guadalupe is economically and socially tied to the city of Santa Maria, which is about 8 miles ...

. As of 2006, the Railroad is owned by the Coast Belle Rail Corporation.

Traffic

The TRC handles 2,000 cars annually (1996 estimate). Commodities hauled include: *

Asphalt Asphalt, also known as bitumen (, ), is a sticky, black, highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It may be found in natural deposits or may be a refined product, and is classed as a pitch. Before the 20th century, the term ...

Fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

*Fresh and Frozen Food products *

Gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, blackboard or sidewalk chalk, and drywal ...

wallboard Drywall (also called plasterboard, dry lining, wallboard, sheet rock, gypsum board, buster board, custard board, and gypsum panel) is a panel made of calcium sulfate dihydrate (gypsum), with or without additives, typically extruded between thic ...

Lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

* Machinery *

Petroleum Products Petroleum products are materials derived from crude oil (petroleum) as it is processed in oil refineries. Unlike petrochemicals, which are a collection of well-defined usually pure organic compounds, petroleum products are complex mixtures. The m ...

Plastic Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...

*Scrap iron Prior traffic included: *

Beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

* Sugar and Sugar beets

Passenger Service

Special passenger service was only offered during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

on the Air Base branch to transport military personnel to the Santa Maria Army Air Base for training. The Air Base branch was constructed in 1943. Excursions were offered for the first time on the SMVRR in November 2006, continuing into 2007.

History

The SMV was incorporated on July 14, 1911 as the Santa Maria Valley Railwayat Los Angeles, California with A. A. Dougherty listed as President. The first of track, from the Southern Pacific connection at Guadalupe to Betteravia Junction, was actually built by the SP in August 1899 to get to a sugar mill. The SP leased the track to the SMV years later. From Betteravia the SMV built to Santa Maria and on to Roadamite. The SMV also had branches running from Stowell to Air Base, Suey to Rosemary Farms and Rex to Gates. By 1925 the railway traffic had steeply declined and the railway went bankrupt. Captain

George Allan Hancock George Allan Hancock (July 26, 1875 – May 31, 1965) was the owner of the Rancho La Brea Oil Company. He inherited Rancho La Brea, including the La Brea Tar Pits which he donated to Los Angeles County. He also developed Hancock Park, Los Angeles ...

br>
a principal of the Dominion Oil Company, purchased the railroad for $75,000 at a Sheriff's auction. The railroad was then reorganized as the Santa Maria Valley Railroad in 1926. Until 2006, the railroad was owned by Captain G. Allan Hancock's estate. The original line ran for , from Guadalupe to Roadamite. The track from Gates to Roadamite was abandoned in 1950. The last run of No. 21, Captain Hancock's favorite steam locomotive, was in February 1962. Captain Hancock took the throttle one last time.

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...

was in the cab with Captain Hancock. Baldwin 21 currently is undergoing restoration in Astoria, Oregon to be returned to excursion service. The Union Sugar Beet plant closed in 1993, ending the beet train era. In 1999 the G. Allan Hancock Estate gained full control of the SMV. The assets of the railroad were sold to Coast Belle Rail Corporation in 2006, ending an 81-year ownership by the Hancock family. Other than 21, three other steam locomotives are in existence. 205 is nearing completion in the return to Service, also in Oregon, owned by George Lavacott. 100 is also in Oregon, but has not yet entered restoration. 1000 resides on Static Display in

Griffith Park Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park includes popular attractions such as the Los Angeles Zoo, the Autry Museum of the Ameri ...

at Travel Town.

Timeline

*July 14, 1911 Santa Maria Valley Railway organized *August 23, 1911 grading commenced *September 28, 1911 laying rails commenced *March 15, 1912 construction completed *October 7, 1911 first train operated *1926 Santa Maria Valley ''Railway'' reorganized as the Santa Maria Valley ''Railroad'' *1950 track abandoned between Gates and Roadamite *2006 Purchased by the Coast Belle Rail Corp. from the descendants of G.A. Hancock family *2008 All track east of McClelland Street now vacated. Offices moved to Betteravia Industrial Park (at the site of the old sugar mill).

Route

Main Route

*Guadalupe (interchange with UP - former SP) originally leased to SMV by SP. *Betteravia Junction *Carr *Pacer *Midco * Santa Maria

Air Base Branch (Santa Maria Army Air Base)

*Santa Maria *Airbase (also with a spur to Pesco)

Betteravia Branch

*Betteravia Junction *Gumm (Iremel) * Betteravia

Rosemary Branch (abandoned)

*Santa Maria *Suey *Rosemary (Rosemary Farms) *Battles

Gates Branch (abandoned)

*Rosemary (named after owner G. Allan Hancock's daughter) *Rex *Gates *Roadamite (Gates - Roadamite abandoned in 1950)

Motive Power

The SMV has 5 locomotives: *SMV #70 a

GE 70-ton switcher The GE 70-ton switcher is a 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Electric between about 1942 and 1955. It is classified as a B-B type locomotive. The first series of "70 tonners" were a group of seven center-cab locomotives built for ...

built in January 1950 (Builder No. 30381) acquired for operation in November 1972 from Fort Dodge DM&S *SMV #80 a

built in December 1953 (Builder No. 32207) acquired for parts for its fleet of 70-ton switchers in November 1972 from Fort Dodge DM&S *SMV #1801 an

EMD GP9 The EMD GP9 is a four-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division between 1954 and 1959. The GP9 succeeded the GP7 as the second model of EMD's General Purpose (GP) line, incorporating a new sixteen- cylin ...

built in June 1959 (Builder No. 25314) Built for Milwaukee Road as their #319 *BUGX #1322, a former

Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...

(AT&SF)

EMD GP7 The EMD GP7 is a four-axle ( B-B) diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division and General Motors Diesel between October 1949 and May 1954.Pinkepank, Jerry A. (1973) pp. 53 Power was provided by an EMD 567B ...

(u), still with the original Blue and Gold Paint Scheme (leased) *FWRY 3501

EMD GP35 The EMD GP35 is a 4-axle diesel-electric locomotive built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division between July 1963 and December 1965 and by General Motors Diesel between May 1964 and January 1966. 1251 examples were built for American railro ...

, Purchased from the

Fillmore and Western Railway The Fillmore and Western Railway was a heritage railway which operated on track owned by the Ventura County Transportation Commission. Visitors to Fillmore would see filming activity as well as sets and support equipment at the company's rai ...

in 2021. The SMV operated five 70 ton switchers and one U6B that were acquired between 1948-1959. Roster from the Friends of the SMV: https://friends-smvrr.org/images/history/SMVRR-roster.pdf Also see The Diesel Shop Roster: https://www.thedieselshop.us/SMVR.HTML

References

* * * * * *

External links

Official Santa Maria Valley Railroad homepageFriends of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad

Additional reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Santa Maria Valley Railroad California railroads Companies operating former Southern Pacific Transportation Company lines Transportation in Santa Barbara County, California