Nostalgia & History > West Oakland Rails, pt 1

Last October, I was down in West Oakland on errands, and took some pics of what turned out to be the former Key System 26th st. industrial spur. I went back a week or so later and took a few more.

A coworker of mine, who owns a home near the old spur, told me that things have hurried up a bit, for whatever reason, since Oakland's "Ghost Ship" tragedy, and buildings, along with their rail accesses, have been getting removed to make room for - you guessed it - lofts and other types of living spaces. So, we decided to get down there to photograph what's left of Key/OTRy, SP, and Santa Fe rails, etc., before it's all gone. I don't know if we found anything especially interesting, so I'll let you all decide.

My original post:
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4144902

And a week or so later:
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4148537

This one's the "High Switch Stand" at 26th and Wood st - we used the map Evan Werkema kindly uploaded to this post (also reposted below) to trace rails. Actually, we found damm near every one - at least sections, anyway:
http://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,3678792

Anyway, we started out on the map by heading generally west on 26th, which has been covered pretty well in the two original posts - but I'll add a few new ones to get us started.

1: Evan's/Western Railway Museum's OTR map:

2: Key's 26th st spur went as far east as Chestnut, and as the map shows, there was a spur there. Of course, it's long gone. The first (last?) reminant of rail was this, just east of Adeline.

3: I had to add this in: Evan Werkema solved this question as to what this building was: The Kokken White plant, 26th and Adeline, makers of, to simplify things, barber and beauty chairs and such. Today, lofts. Why I'm not suprized, I don't know...! I tried and tried to get this one upright - anybody wanna help?

More to come:



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/17 06:49 by drumwrencher.

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4: This is what's left of the 26th st. team track identified in both original posts. At that time, I thought it ran further, but behind me, was a very private trucking firm, with no evidence left of the team track, so I decided to leave it to this pic.

5: This is the lead from Poplar onto 26th, looking generally north.

6: Looking southward, here's what's left of the lead into 22nd st, which, as many of you may know, was Key's "B" line into Oakland proper. At least I *think* it was "B"... Obviously, there will never be rails around that corner again...

Not that it matters, but my buddy and I work for a Honda dealer, so we spent some time going over that derelict Accord to the right of pic 3. Never mind what we found - certainly not rail related!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/23/17 17:31 by drumwrencher.

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I want to move on a bit here. We spent the next couple hours tracing SP/ATSF trackage, but I thought I'd try to finish up the old Key/OTRy stuff.

1: A bit closer view of the old curve from Poplar onto 22nd (West Grand, nowadays)

2, 3: Evan ok'd posting some of WRM's Key pics here, for a "then and now" comparison.
First, is WRM's photo 88718, with the photo's explanation not needing repeating, and second is as near to that location as we could find. My buddy confirmed it by, believe it or not, the I beam jutting out near the roof of the building on the right. Good spotting, bro. In Evan's pic, the house that's no longer there threw me off a bit, with the warehouse there now...



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/21/17 21:25 by drumwrencher.

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Since the last WRM pic and this one were so relatively close, I didn't try to exactly duplicate the location, but just took a few steps closer to where the diesel is pulling or shoving the car into. Didn't get the name of the business there then, or now.

1: WRM's photo 88713, and

2: Near there today.

3: A look back at the spur from the now-dead-end rails.

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drumwrencher Wrote:
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> 3: I had to add this in: Evan Werkema solved this question as to what this building was: The Kokken
> White plant, 26th and Adeline, makers of, to simplify things, barber and beauty chairs and
> such. Today, lofts. Why I'm not suprized, I don't know...! I tried and tried to get this one upright
> - anybody wanna help?

Let's see if this worked...

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Nice work!  Thanks for posting- I love this stuff!
SR

1:WRM's self-explanatory photo 68997, and

2:Our best guess as to where this actually is.

Evan, if you're reading this, I gotta tell ya, this pic was difficult to find. I'm not going to post them all, but we took pics of the intersection of Poplar and 22nd, and it just doesn't fit - our pic is at 24th and Poplar - the tracks fit. And, although the "war time" (?) housing in WRM's photo is long gone, the building in our pic is the only one in the close area that didn't seem to be from 1920-something. I am, of course, open to yours and others suggestions, comments, etc.

That's all I have time for now, folks. I didn't finish Key/OTRy, so maybe just a bit more before I move onto SP/ATSF stuff. There's also some trackage I'm not sure who's it was - but that's another post.

Enjoy. Hope you all enjoyed these ancient, soon-to-be demolished rails.

Walter

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Always interesting to hear about and see the old rails in the pavement in places I'm familiar with. Noticed a long time ago that there's a golden hour on Sunday mornings where no one is on the streets.

drumwrencher Wrote:

> Since the last WRM pic and this one were so
> relatively close, I didn't try to exactly
> duplicate the location, but just took a few steps
> closer to where the diesel is pulling or shoving
> the car into. Didn't get the name of the business
> there then, or now.

Below is a portion of a Key System map dated 3-29-1930 that identifies freight customers, also from the Western Railway Museum Archives. In 1930, that spur served Warren Construction, but since the spur isn't shown on the 1943 map, it's likely that another business had moved in by 1956.

> 2:Our best guess as to where this actually is.
>
> Evan, if you're reading this, I gotta tell ya,
> this pic was difficult to find. I'm not going to
> post them all, but we took pics of the
> intersection of Poplar and 22nd, and it just
> doesn't fit - our pic is at 24th and Poplar - the
> tracks fit.

Yes, that's a good approximation. In my original post with that photo, I mentioned that the wigwag on the left was guarding the B line as it swings off toward 22nd, and comparing to the map, that would put the photographer down about 24th.

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What history these cover!
Great photos.
Bob

The following are also from the Western Railway Museum Archives. I should probably have posted them earlier to give you some more "then" fodder:

1. One of the only photos I've found of the Key System/Oakland Terminal Railroad (pre-1943) freight motors working on the A and B lines. OTRR 1001 is sandwiched by a tank car and a boxcar (the latter probably from the Nabisco plant at 14th & Poplar) as it heads north on Poplar crossing 22nd. The building in the background still stood the last time I was in Oakland: https://goo.gl/maps/nBDE5x9Bz4Q2

2. The repurposed Sprouse Reitz warehouse with its colonnaded industrial spur is still standing at 22nd and Adeline, and there is even a piece of track remaining in the street: https://goo.gl/maps/y7732N5sKo72

3. Union Ice at 22nd and Filbert. The building on the right behind the boxcar still stood in 2014: https://goo.gl/maps/tjBNpAuEgoE2 , but is just a vacant lot now: https://goo.gl/maps/nBDE5x9Bz4Q2

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ble692 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> drumwrencher Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > 3: I had to add this in: Evan Werkema solved
> this question as to what this building was: The
> Kokken
> > White plant, 26th and Adeline, makers of, to
> simplify things, barber and beauty chairs and
> > such. Today, lofts. Why I'm not suprized, I
> don't know...! I tried and tried to get this one
> upright
> > - anybody wanna help?
>
> Let's see if this worked...

THANK YOU!! I was way too tired after a hot day in West Oakland to argue with that damm pic!

Walter

Evan_Werkema Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> drumwrencher Wrote:
>
> > Since the last WRM pic and this one were so
> > relatively close, I didn't try to exactly
> > duplicate the location, but just took a few
> steps
> > closer to where the diesel is pulling or
> shoving
> > the car into. Didn't get the name of the
> business
> > there then, or now.
>
> Below is a portion of a Key System map dated
> 3-29-1930 that identifies freight customers, also
> from the Western Railway Museum Archives. In
> 1930, that spur served Warren Construction, but
> since the spur isn't shown on the 1943 map, it's
> likely that another business had moved in by
> 1956.
>
> > 2:Our best guess as to where this actually is.
> >
> > Evan, if you're reading this, I gotta tell ya,
> > this pic was difficult to find. I'm not going
> to
> > post them all, but we took pics of the
> > intersection of Poplar and 22nd, and it just
> > doesn't fit - our pic is at 24th and Poplar -
> the
> > tracks fit.
>
> Yes, that's a good approximation. In my original
> post with that photo, I mentioned that the wigwag
> on the left was guarding the B line as it swings
> off toward 22nd, and comparing to the map, that
> would put the photographer down about 24th.

Love the map, Evan. If you don't mind, I'd like to print a copy and give it to Jesus, my coworker. He knows more about the area than I, (since he lives there, I'm sure) and was fascinated by all we found. I know he'd like to know the names of some of those old businesses... And of course, he's not on TO...

Walter

Evan_Werkema Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The following are also from the Western Railway
> Museum Archives. I should probably have posted
> them earlier to give you some more "then" fodder:
>
> 1. One of the only photos I've found of the Key
> System/Oakland Terminal Railroad (pre-1943)
> freight motors working on the A and B lines. OTRR
> 1001 is sandwiched by a tank car and a boxcar (the
> latter probably from the Nabisco plant at 14th &
> Poplar) as it heads north on Poplar crossing 22nd.
> The building in the background still stood the
> last time I was in Oakland:
> https://goo.gl/maps/nBDE5x9Bz4Q2
>
> 2. The repurposed Sprouse Reitz warehouse with its
> colonnaded industrial spur is still standing at
> 22nd and Adeline, and there is even a piece of
> track remaining in the street:
> https://goo.gl/maps/y7732N5sKo72
>
> 3. Union Ice at 22nd and Filbert. The building on
> the right behind the boxcar still stood in 2014:
> https://goo.gl/maps/tjBNpAuEgoE2 , but is just a
> vacant lot now: https://goo.gl/maps/nBDE5x9Bz4Q2

We drove right by all of these, Evan. The first building is visible in the distance of pics 6 and 7, and others we took near 22nd. Attached is another we took while trying to solve the 22nd/24th street thing. Damm! I saw the Sprouse Reitz "lofts", with rail STILL going in that spur, but didn't pic it - we were on our way home. I think I also didn't picture the vacant lot where Union Ice was - Jesus says there are plans for a 4 story, I believe he said, apartment building. He said it wasn't too long ago the building was demolished - it was an ice cream plant of some brand, I think he said.

FWIW, the hydrant, power pole and the cabinet there on pic right is what took us a while to solve the 22/24th street thing... What gave it away was the hydrant was just recently installed, probably due to the wheelchair ramp work. That and we finally figured WRM's photo 68997 was facing the other way...

Thanks again, Evan.

Walter



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/21/17 21:04 by drumwrencher.

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BoilingMan Wrote:
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> Nice work!  Thanks for posting- I love this
> stuff!
> SR


Thank you, SR. I hope you enjoy the stuff yet to post - lots more to go...

Walter

Great topic, drumwrencher. Thanks Evan for some terrific maps.

Here are a couple at Adeline. I never knew what that building with the spur track was for until reading this post.

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Here's a shot of the track into Bekins at Brush Street. Plus one from San Pablo Avenue looking west toward Bekins.

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A great effort. I have driven by those segments off and on for years, but never understood the significance of what was once there. I have spent some time looking at the what remains of the old WP in West Oakland, or at least what is west of the former end of double track at Clinton (Across from the old SP East Oakland Yard). If you look hard there are a couple short segments left, but construction looks like it will soon wipe another short remaining segment on 4th St. Construction at the BART yard looks like it will wipe out the last remaining section of WP rail where it once connected to the BART Maintenance yard.

Gary

TCnR Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Always interesting to hear about and see the old
> rails in the pavement in places I'm familiar with.
> Noticed a long time ago that there's a golden hour
> on Sunday mornings where no one is on the streets.

I think you might be surprised how much has changed down there. I know I certainly was, what with remembering Oakland in say, 1968... While there are still many many, well, let's say "less than desirables", about, and I still don't recommend a visit around sundown, there is beginning to be a small population of what my coworker calls "hipsters" - mostly hi tech types who don't want to pay SF rent prices - probably not going to be cheap around there much longer, once all the planned apartments, lofts, et al, gets built.

More on that next post...

Walter



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/21/17 22:29 by drumwrencher.

A couple more. Poplar Street double track became single after Key trains quit in April 1958. The track was very bad from what old timers say and the OTR put in single track down the middle of the road.

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