Nostalgia & History > PE's ATSF X-ing at Claremont

We are aboard Pacific Electric's freight motor #1629, inbound (Westward) moving toward Los Angeles in the summer of 1951. Just ahead, the interlocking home signal shows Proceed to cross ATSF's Los Angeles-San Bernadino (via Pasadena) main track. This portion of PE's San Bernadino line was built by the Ontario & San Antonio Heights Railroad and placed in service on December 31, 1910. The overhead 1200 volt line has just a few months to go before being de-activated. All electric operation ceased on October 1, 1951 but the wire remained activated until November 30th to operate crossing warning devices by trolley pole. It is mid-afternoon and we will be in State St. Yard in a couple of hours and then home for supper. Photo by William Wherry

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Sounds like there were a number of high voltage (110 and/or 220AC) wigwags left on that line.

I think he meant that the trolley wire brushes activated the wig-wags not supplied them with power.

Wow, interesting picture. I'm guessing that junction is now at the present-day location of Metrolink's CP Cambridge (with Cambridge Avenue crossing north-south about where the semaphore was? Sometime in the years after PE, the line was reconfigured in Claremont so that SP trains had trackage rights on the ATSF 2nd District for almost a mile from Cambridge Ave. to just east of the Santa Fe (now Metrolink) Claremont Depot, where the SP branched to the northeast to connect with the old PE alignment east to San Bernardino.

Thanks much for sharing,

Rich

danf Wrote:
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> Sounds like there were a number of high voltage
> (110 and/or 220AC) wigwags left on that line.


Quoting from Interurbans Special #16 about crossing signals:

"A major job was converting crossing signals from trolley activated DC to low voltage track circuit operation. It took six weeks after dieselization before this conversion was completed, and in the intrim diesels were either equipped with trolley poles or dragged a dead electric locomotive--enough current being maintained in the trolley wire to activate the signals. On November 30, 1951 all substations and electrical energizing facilities on the SB line were taken out of service."

If the Gold Line Foothill Extension project is completed, we'll see trolley wire in Claremont again, probably close to this alignment. Maybe ten years from now, if all goes well.

WHAT A GREAT PHOTO !
The Claremont Tower, the semaphore, the smudge oil tanks of the College Heights association (packing house), orange trees and the Santa Fe spur that served industries (packing houses)north of the PE mainline.
The tower was no long for the world and was replaced by time release derails on the PE/SP. he AT&SF route was clear (with ABS in use) unless the PE crew started the time release and then the Santa Fe signals went to stop and after the time limit expired, the derail could be rolled over and a permissive indication was given. The PE/SP crew would have to reopen the derail after the train passed oiver the derail. The derail on the opposite side has a spring system that allowed the train to pass without manually lining it.
It is interesting the two wooden boxcars on the right with wire over the track for a distance. This may have been an interchange between the PE anf AT&SF as well as a lead to the industries.

MyfordBrowning Wrote:
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>
> The tower was no long for the world and was
> replaced by time release derails on the PE/SP. he
> AT&SF route was clear (with ABS in use) unless
> the PE crew started the time release and then the
> Santa Fe signals went to stop and after the time
> limit expired, the derail could be rolled over and
> a permissive indication was given. The PE/SP crew
> would have to reopen the derail after the train
> passed oiver the derail. The derail on the
> opposite side has a spring system that allowed the
> train to pass without manually lining it.
>
Your comments about hand lining through the interlocking evoke memories of a similar operation at Wise Tower, but I will save that for a more appropriate posting.

It is interesting the two wooden boxcars on the
> right with wire over the track for a distance.
> This may have been an interchange between the PE
> anf AT&SF as well as a lead to the industries.


I believe you are correct about the interchange track although a look at my PE 1940's ETT fails to mention this or any other interchange, for that matter. Apparently it was not considered necessary to mention them in the ETT's of the time. A closer look using Photoshop reveals that the three (3) box cars are actually sitting on a track connected to the interchange track. Also, as you note the trolley wire appears to end just west of where these cars are sitting as evidenced by the lack of poles beyond; toward the ATSF main track. It looks as if those wooden box cars had been sitting there a long time.