Southern Pacific Railroad History
Southern Pacific Historical and Technical Society
The SPH&TS is dedicated to preserving and disseminating the historical record of the Southern Pacific Railroad and its affiliates. They support railfanning, industrial archeology, and accurate scale modeling of this great pioneer railroad of the western United States.
Southern Pacific Coast Daylight
Excellent resource covering this iconic train.
The Worlds Most Beautiful Train by Dr. Walter Rice, Phd.
Reprinted with permision of JournalPlus Magazine & Dr. Walter Rice
Closing the Southern Pacific Coastal Gap by Loren Nicholson
Reprinted with permision of JournalPlus Magazine & Loren Nicholson
The Coast Line, A History
The Ferroequinologist, June 1984, Central Coast Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society
Southern Pacific Coast Daylight Trains between San Luis Obispo and Los Angeles Part 1
Part 1 will be from San Luis Obispo to Ventura. SoCalTrainFan Productions 2019.
SP2472 @ San Luis Obispo in 1994
Newly Digitized VHS Footage from Golden Gate Railroad Museum Member Cris Hart.
This is My Railroad
About the Southern Pacific RailRoad, 1940
SLO Railroad History: A walking tour
Points of interest for San Luis Obispo railroad history. A collaboration with the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum. Check out the History Center's Railroad District podcast too. Do you have a place to add? Contact us at archives@calpoly.edu
Union Pacific and Southern Pacific Maps
These maps are on the SLO County website.
Pacific Coast Railway History
San Luis Obispo's Other Railroad - The PCRy by Dr. Walter Rice, Phd.
Reprinted with permision of JournalPlus Magazine & Dr. Walter Rice
Pacific Coast Railway Map
PCRy Right-of-Way Map by Frederick Shaw
Pacific Coast Railway on Film
Diamond Jim, A 1935 Film featuring the Original PCRy (pictured at right)
The Pacific Coast Railway: Central California's Premier Narrow Gauge
by Kenneth E. Westcott and Curtiss H. Johnson, ISBN-13: 978-0961546748
Available at the Gift Shop
Pacific Coast Railway Self-Guided Auto Tour
Developed by Michael Maurer and Elliott Marshall.
Pacific Coast Railway Maps
These maps are on the SLO County website.
Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific: History and Photos
At Union Pacific Railroad's own website
Union Pacific Railroad
Today...
Union Pacific and Southern Pacific Maps
These maps are on the SLO County website.
Santa Maria Valley Railroad
History of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad
As presented on the website of the Friends of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad
Santa Maria Valley Railroad
Today...
Friends of the Santa Maria Valley Railroad
Today...
Amtrak
History of Amtrak
As presented on Amtrak's website
Amtrak
Today...
Other/Multiple Local Railroad History
Photos from Unocal of the Avila Beach area
Courtesy of Rob Rossi: Part 1 (PDF, 2.7mb), Part 2 (PDF, 2.6mb). These can be viewed with good clarity at 150% or slightly more for reading the handwritten notes and better picture viewing.
San Luis Obispo Historical Railroad District Walk of History Tour
A Self Guided Walking Tour by the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum and the City of San Luis Obispo
San Luis Obispo, A Brief Description from 1931
Economic Geography, V. 7, No. 3, July 1931, Excerpt from Article by John Wesley Coulter
SLO Railroad History: A walking tour (Cal Poly Library)
Points of interest for San Luis Obispo railroad history. A collaboration with Cal Poly and the San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum. Check out the History Center's Railroad District podcast too. Do you have a place to add? Contact us at archives@calpoly.edu
SLO Historical Railroad Lines and Stations (Cal Poly Library)
Southern Pacific and Pacific Coast Railway lines layered with current and historical topo maps. Contact us at archives@calpoly.edu
San Luis Obispo (SLO) Area Railroading
Page of links to current and historical area railroading information.
People Tracker
Compilation of Railroad Workers on the Central Coast
Compiled here are over 2,000 names and, when known, certain other information on people who worked in some capacity for a railroad that operated or operates on California's Central Coast, according to documents deemed to be generally reliable. Last updated 11/9/2023.