Nostalgia & History > SP Gaviota water tanks circa late '60s

Here's a few shots of the wood water tank and the steel water tank at Gaviota on the SP coastline. Unfortunately, the station had been torn down by this time and it wouldn't be long before the wooden tank was taken down. It was in pretty sad shape anyway. Then a year or so later the steel tank was removed. Maintenance sheds removed soon after that too. Last month my son posted one of my shots of an SP SDP45 on the westbound daylight going by here. This shot is looking east toward Santa Barbarta, about 30 miles away................. C.C.Chas.

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shot #2 still looking east but showing the wooden water tank on the east side of the steel water tank. Still had a couple of section houses in the distance here.

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shot #3 looking at the backs of the sheds from the ocean side of the tracks.

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shot #4 the two water tanks from the ocean side of the tracks. Highway 101 was a little ways up the hill in the background.

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last shot is a more overall shot of the SP siding and mainline tracks in the foreground and still looking southeast at the watertanks east of the maintenance sheds. Had some fun family picnics watching the very few trains that came by here during the daytime.

C.C.Chas.

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Very nice...thanks for posting...good you photo'd something besides the trains!

I would assume that Gaviota would be considered a good place to work if you were a section hand or an operator, what with the ocean view. Anybody have any insights? Was the turnover in such places fairly rapid?

There was a signal maintainer still living there in 69. Pretty soon the only thing left was the steel water tank.

SP wanted to take it down but up popped the Coastal Comm. Back and forth they went until one night, it fell over. Gee, in the clear and nothing else was touched. Same thing happed to the bridge over the main line at Drake, 45 minutes ahead of 99 and the timbers were in the clear. Except the rattlesnake nest under the ocean side pier. Those MofW guys can rerally move if the have to.




Nudge