Nostalgia & History > The Tehachapi and Boron, CA depots in 1980

1. The green and white SP Tehachapi Depot - 09-1980
2, 3. The very red, late ATSF Boron, CA depot. I don't know the date this depot was eliminated. I could not find it several years ago when I looked for it.

Don Bowen
Saint Helena, CA



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/09/11 18:26 by dlbowen.

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The Boron depot is preserved at a museum in town. It's on the south side of Twenty Mule Team Rd just west 0f Boron Ave. It can be seen using Google maps street level view.

It's interesting that a "C" office (office of communications) was around for such a long time after the line had been CTC'd (1950's). The explanation that I was given, is that an agent was required to originate the large amount carloads from the PC Borax Company.

Maybe they weren't working too hard...

The agent seems to have a very nice (looks like a "Channel Master") Uhf/Vhf TV Antenna pointed toward Barstow. The RR radio antenna is up on top of the signal line pole.

I wonder if he was hoping to get Channel 52 which was "OnTV" back then. You did need a "box" to view it though.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/09/11 18:53 by ats90mph.

Two great restaurants in Boron, both within walking distance of that station: K&L Corral across the street - Domingo's a block east! Enjoy!

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

Also, Tehachapi is full of good places to east...

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

Santa Fe Coast Line Depots - The Valley Division shows the Boron agency closed in 1982 and "office" portion moved over to the museum in 1987. The baggage room/tool house remained trackside into the late 90's, but was gone by the early 2000's. Here's the office portion at the museum last year:

http://www.trainorders.com/images2/view.php?442244

1stcajon Wrote:
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> The Boron depot is preserved at a museum in town.
> It's on the south side of Twenty Mule Team Rd just
> west 0f Boron Ave. It can be seen using Google
> maps street level view.


i remember the Borax commercials on Death Valley in the 60's and the twenty mule team horses pulling the stage wagon

Several years back in 2000 there about the N Scale collector group did a special run set of car Borax hoppers to help pay for a face lift giving it a coat of exterior paint. So Model railroaders are a great bunch.

Speaking of Boron; I recently saw an old system map that showed a line running north from Boron to the Randsburg/Johannesburg area. I thought that I was fairly familiar with the California desert, but this was news to me.
Can the TO brain trust provide any info about this branch?
TIA!
...Lorenzo

567Chant Wrote:
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> Speaking of Boron; I recently saw an old system
> map that showed a line running north from Boron to
> the Randsburg/Johannesburg area. I thought that I
> was fairly familiar with the California desert,
> but this was news to me.
> Can the TO brain trust provide any info about this
> branch?
> TIA!
> ...Lorenzo


Yes, I can, a little, many of the websites have been taken down, here is the wikipedia page:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randsburg_Railway

It ran from Kramer to Jo-berg, almost 30 miles, here are some past posts:

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,2250108,2250155#msg-2250155

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,2176214,2176788#msg-2176788

http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,1526937,1527511#msg-1527511

If your heading north on 395 coming into the Randsburg area, look to your right and the old road bed can still be seen.

CS