Nostalgia & History > Tower Tuesday: Kern Junction CA

A tower that seems conspicuous in it's lack of coverage is Kern Junction Tower in Bakersfield CA. This is where the Santa Fe (and now the BNSF) connects with SP's (now UP's) Tehachapi Pass mainline.

On July 5, 1986 I pried myself away from the busy action up on the pass and spent about an hour at Kern Junction Tower photographing both Santa Fe and SP movements. Pictured here are a pair of Santa Fe freights passing the tower during the days when Kodachromes were mixing it up with traditional blue and yellow.

Unfortunately this was the only time I spent here until 2006 when, of course, the tower had been long gone. Interestingly, UP sent me a southbound that day, with a solid lashhup of Norfolk Southern units, including one still in Conrail blue.

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The original GRS switches from the interlocking machine at the tower are still in place at Kern, however they are thrown from San Bernardino now. There are long instructions to hand throw the switches with a crank.

A little bit of Kern Jct. Tower still lives on.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/06/11 14:18 by ats90mph.

rattenne Wrote:

> On July 5, 1986 I pried myself away from the busy
> action up on the pass and spent about an hour at
> Kern Junction Tower photographing both Santa Fe
> and SP movements.

Thanks for the photos! You got there just in time - Gustafson & Serpico's Santa Fe Coast Line Depots - the Valley Division reports that the tower had closed the month before, and was demolished some time in July 1986.

That two-tone brown and beige scheme appears to have been something of a latter-day Valley Division standard - the Pittsburg, CA depot and a handful of tool sheds and other auxiliary buildings still standing at the time also got those colors.

Something odd about Santa Fe towers up the Valley is that they all seemed to have SP-style octagonal signboards. Even Merced Tower #2, which protected the Yosemite Valley diamonds and didn't involve SP at all, had SP-shaped signs:

http://www.yosemitevalleyrailroad.com/GALLARY_HTML.DIR/YV.MercedTower.html

I'm still amazed on how close the mainline was to the tower.

Classics,

Thanks
Gary

P5r24 Wrote:
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> I'm still amazed on how close the mainline was to
> the tower.
>
> Classics,
>
> Thanks
> Gary


looks status quo for the towers that were on the old PRR

P5r24 Wrote:
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> I'm still amazed on how close the mainline was to
> the tower.

Would make for convenient "handing up (out)" orders. Just stick the hoop-pole out the window. The distance looks about right.

Kent in Carmel Valley

My Father was a Pain gang Foreman on the Valley division from 1953 - 1975, after leaving Signal. The Superintendent, Sid Rogers had a thing or two to say about what colors the buildings on the Valley Division were painted. After Mr. Rogers, that tradition, for lack of better words, seem to carry on. One of the paint colors was a God awful green. The two tone you speak of here, was the last large scale paint color. Paint gangs were abolished in 1975. At one time, the Valley Division had 3 Paint Gangs. They were also responsible for sandblasting, and painting all the bridges. Once painted, all horizonatal surfaces were greased to repel salt water from Ice Reefers...the last of thos was gone by 1971 or so...although we kept one for a few more years on my Dad's gang...for our ice boxes in the oufit cars. Newer cars came out in 1968-89 and the old outfit set was canned. Iloved growing up in those old outfit cars. Didn't like them as much when I started on Extra gangs in 1973...too many men stuck in a small car. Once I became a foreman and got my own outfit car...just like my Dad, but my cars weren't as nice...I liked them fine. Home away from home, for me.