Nostalgia & History > Redlands Loop ROW

Over the past week or so there's been some discussion about the old rail lines, both SP and ATSF through Redlands, CA. In some spots, the ROW can still be seen where the SP line ran through and of course the Santa Fe tracks are still there up to and little past the Redlands Depot.
I started thinking about the north side of Santa Fe's loop and wondered if there was any remittance of the line. Besides the old Highland depot, which still stands, I did in fact find a small section that is plainly visible. Located just north of Hwy 30 off Sterling Ave., one block north of Date St. The section runs east for about one mile between houses. The east end of the section is located at the intersection of Pumalo and Eucalyptus. It is here where I took these interesting photos. (my apologies I only had my camera phone).

1. The east end of the section I found looking west.
2. "Trespassing Prohibited Property of the A.T.S.F Ry. Co. " I believe is says.
3. My favorite shot is of these old RR ties used from the line to make a make shift fence. This one even still had a tie plate!
4. Rail was also used as a gate or another fence post.
5. Same location but looking east. I believe a commercial driveway is through the gate.

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Do you mean the Patton depot at its original location or the Highland depot building which stands as a home at its relocated 9th Street location? At "Highland" there is only the foundation and a railing at the steps.

gp

Back around 1966 or 1967, Orange Empire Trolley Museum ran a special (over 20 cars) through Santa Ana Canyon to the Orange Show in San Bernardino. I recall the power being either a couple of GP7's or GP9's. Anyway, at San Berdoo they cut off some of the cars, including OETM's ex-Canadian Pacific open air car #599, and we went through Redlands to, I believe, as far as Patton. The last passenger train there that I am aware of.

Steve Gillings

sbgabe Wrote:
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> Do you mean the Patton depot at its original
> location or the Highland depot building which
> stands as a home at its relocated 9th Street
> location? At "Highland" there is only the
> foundation and a railing at the steps.
>
> gp


I did not know there were to separate depots. I spoke with a fellow rail buff tonight that lives in Highland and he said the same thing. Very interesting to know that the Highland station was relocated to 9th street. Where about on 9th is it? He also said that the ROW is still visible in Highland at the corner of Pacific and Palm. There is also a old packing house that still stands. I will check it out tomorrow and take some photos.

Ryan Dora
San Bernardino, CA
Modeling the SP

sphauler Wrote:
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> sbgabe Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Do you mean the Patton depot at its original
> > location or the Highland depot building which
> > stands as a home at its relocated 9th Street
> > location? At "Highland" there is only the
> > foundation and a railing at the steps.
> >
> > gp
>
>
> I did not know there were to separate depots. I
> spoke with a fellow rail buff tonight that lives
> in Highland and he said the same thing. Very
> interesting to know that the Highland station was
> relocated to 9th street. Where about on 9th is
> it? He also said that the ROW is still visible in
> Highland at the corner of Pacific and Palm. There
> is also a old packing house that still stands. I
> will check it out tomorrow and take some photos.


The remaining depot is the Patton depot, though I did not know that the original Highland depot was moved.

As a kid I moved to Highland from cross-town Rialto in 1970. The 1966 special went to end-of-track at Del Rosa, but by 1970 the tracks terminated at Patton, where there was a siding. The Local would bring in about 2 to 4 cars of lumber every other or every third day where they were off-loaded and trucked to a local hardware/lumber yard. I went to school with the owner's daughter but I've long forgot the lady's and the lumber store's name. The Local would generally have one locomotive (usually a GP35) and a caboose, and run around the train and return long-hood forward since there was no wye at Patton. On the days it had 2 locomotives it was no problem.

Occasionally the Local would spot a furniture car at two of the local old-time warehouses (converted Packing houses) in "downtown" Highland. The last I looked, one was a church. These would be 40' friction bearing cars bearing names from the South like NS (the original NS) or Southern or Seaboard, etc.

All the crossings in Highland that warranted protection were wig-wags. Highland, and East Highland, in those days still had many orange groves. It was a fun place to be.

It has been remodeled since I took this picture back in 2001. This is around the 9th and Lankershim area on the north side of the 9th. I don't like to say anything negative about certain parts of town since I grew up in West Side San Bernardino, but this part of 9th Street may not feel too comfortable to some.

g. perez

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Our property butts up against the ex ATSF r/w on the south sidee at mp19.4..between Highland and Del Rosa stations...our property deed still shows, behind our north wall, 50' AT&SF R/W..there is still a palm tree west of us south of Patton. where the stock yard was for Patton Hospital in the old daze...

Here are a few pictures from the 3/11/67 OET trip - the weather was not great
1 - Redlands station
2 - Santa Ana River bridge photo run by
3 & 4 - Del Rosa

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The last one

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Joe:

Thanks for the shot of the 599. It was a great car to ride. I remember it, along with Santa Fe's open platform obs 1509, on the January 28, 1967 Pasadena to Barstow trip with two PA's. I believe that it was one of three (597, 598, 599?) cars that Canadian Pacific had built. I think that one of the other cars went to a tourist line back east. Does anyone know where the 599 ended up?

Steve Gillings

I too remember riding the 599 as one of the high points of many trips. When I last saw it, it was on the Sierra, but that probably was 20 years ago.

joemagruder wrote:

> Here are a few pictures from the 3/11/67 OET trip
- the weather was not great.


The weather for the Redlands Loop portion of the trip wasn't too bad as I recall, just cloudy.

There was also a photo stop at the picturesque stone and stucco East Highlands depot, which remained open until 1970.

One person on that trip, I learned much, much later, was John Signor.

The OET trip was a lot of fun. Besides going to Del Rosa on the Redlands Dist., the train powered by 2 700 class GP9s ran from Fullerton to Orange and used the little used leg of the wye there to connect with the Olive District. The excursion train rejoined the Third District at Atwood.

The Orange Empire Trolley Museum's trip were usually good since they like to use interesting motive power and travel on branch lines.