Western Railroad Discussion > Switch 9 Explained

When a Shed on Donner isn't really a Shed at all...
The key crossovers on Donner that would most be impacted by Winter snows are "indoors", ie: Snow Sheds.  Shed 10, Norden, and Shed 47 are, indeed, proper Sheds.  At Switch 9, where the line goes from Double to Single track (but once crossovers back before the second track was removed) the RR took advantage of the cover provided by I-80 to hide the switch under here.   Before I-80 was built in the late 1950's, the crossover was at Emigrant Gap just West of today's Switch 9.
This is today's #5 coming off the Single Track and onto the #2 Track at Switch 9.
SR

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Here's the overpass under construction  in a shot I took in the early 1960's.

Robert Morris
Dunsmuir, CA
Robert Morris Photography

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That's fantastic!  
Before I-80 was completed, Donner was crossed by US-40, and the Lincoln Highway before that.   US-40 passed under the RR and can be seen in the far background in Bob's photo (You have to squint- it's just above the two lead F's.  I'm pretty sure the Lincoln Highway crossed the RR at grade.  (or at least did initially)
Great Photo!
SR

I borrowed this from the Donner Summit Historical Society.

Looking east with a boulder in the road and early wig wag signals.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/03/21 16:15 by gonx.

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This discussion happens every few years and there's some interesting history that comes out of the collective historians. I don't have every post memorized but I do remember this one.

Date: 11/17/05 12:01
A view of US 40 under SP at Emigrant Gap
Author: timz
https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,1040233,1040269#msg-1040269

It says don't reproduce this so I'm not going to:
http://ulibimage.ucdavis.edu/speccoll/east01/full/B-4663.jpg

+ Wow, haven't seen that photo of the road crossing, pretty cool. There's also one around here somewhere showing the crossing but no vehicle from a slightly different angle. good stuff, interesting topic.

++ WAF found this website from Sierra College and posted it a few years ago, there's also some interesting weather data history in there:
https://www.sierracollege.edu/ejournals/jscnhm/v2n1/gallery2.html



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/03/21 16:29 by TCnR.

Cool- That's the Lincoln Highway's crossing.   The Lincoln's  "Era"  was 1913 to 1927, but I'm guessing this crossing was probably replaced with the underpass before 1927.
SR

I have this RPPC in my collection with a 1934 date.

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Nice post SR with added history from others.  I've only been to Donner about 3 times but I always remember the numerous times on my trips going over that overpass at 60-70 mph. I would get a quick glance of the great views but tried not to let my eyes off the crazies on I-80 for more than a few seconds.

I shot this in March 1980.-BMT

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Now THAT’S a new one on me!
All F40’s on a steam heated train! I think this probably happened on the East Coast, but I have never heard of it out here.
Thanks for posting this!
SR



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/03/21 19:54 by BoilingMan.

Bob's photo caught a train AND a crane lifting an I-beam for the falsework into position simultaneously. Nice.
...Lorenzo

Wow!  Traveling that area was quite the adventure back then.
-Bill-

BoilingMan Wrote:
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> Now THAT’S a new one on me!
> All F40’s on a steam heated train! I think this
> probably happened on the East Coast, but I have
> never heard of it out here.
> Thanks for posting this!
> SR

Thanks to the boiler cars for heat. Wierd locomotive consists on the Fun Train that year

Awesome series!

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