Nostalgia & History > SP #122 gliding into Santa Clara, 1977

Train #122 was the makes-all stops (excepting Castro, College Park) first train of SP's evening commute "Fleet". Its standard consist was always subs, in my experience, I'm guessing because the Subs' two vestibules made for more efficient mass exits than the Galleries' single vestibules. Even so, it typically was running a few minutes late by the time it hit Santa Clara at about a quarter to six. The train's traffic was heavy to Upper Peninsula stations that were missed by the next few "skip-stop" trains. By the time #122 arrived in Santa Clara, most of the remaining passengers were "shorts" who boarded somewhere en route.

In former years #122 was longer - 8 or 9 cars - and would not fit on many platforms. This was not much of a problem, because a regular commuter always rode in the same car, in the same seat and disembarked from the same vestibule onto the same platform location. The engineers all knew the standard "spots" for any given number and combination of Subs and Galleries, and even if an ignorant extra guy stopped the "wrong" end of the train in the ballast, it wasn't that big of a deal. Some veteran commuters were probably better at dismounting a moving train than the average trainmen. Note the guys standing on the bottom vestibule steps, ready to bail off at speeds that I would never attempted while holding a suitcase and a thermos. I've personally seen portly men that appeared to be in their early 50's jump-off-running at speed approaching 15 mph (the legal maximum for trainmen was 10). Some of their dismounts were absolutely graceful, which on the surface would seem amazing, given that this was probably the only exercise that they got after sitting at their desks all day. But, those old veterans had spent decades honing their skills.

As to the photo itself of #3198 & train that I took almost exactly 40 years ago: It makes me feel as if I'm still there on the freight platform. I hope that you experience same.

EO

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Safety standards were much more lax in those days :-).

Excellent photo and storyline. Thanks for sharing that with us here. The hardcore train commuters you describe seem to be the same everywhere I've been (Chicago and NYC).

Cool photo and story. Trying to figure out the engine type (SD45P or GP40P)?

This photo illustrates something I noticed in a similar view of the Livermore, CA depot from 1956 - several spigots protruding from the freight room wall at about head height:

https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4112378,4112838#4112838

Apart from the obvious "to supply water," what was the purpose of placing so many spigots along the freight room wall at that height?

atsf121 Wrote:
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> Cool photo and story. Trying to figure out the
> engine type (SD45P or GP40P)?

GP40P-2

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Evan_Werkema Wrote:
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> This photo illustrates something I noticed in a
> similar view of the Livermore, CA depot from 1956
> - several spigots protruding from the freight room
> wall at about head height:
>
> https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11
> ,4112378,4112838#4112838
>
> Apart from the obvious "to supply water," what was
> the purpose of placing so many spigots along the
> freight room wall at that height?

Boy, you never miss a thing, Evan! The high placement of the hose bibs is to keep guys with hand trucks and carts from knocking them off, I would think, but their exact function is hard to figure. My best guess is that they were connected with short lengths of hose used to spray down fresh fruit such as strawberries and grapes prior to shipment in express cars. This likely is a bad guess.

EO

phthithu Wrote:
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> Could those be old gas lights?


Here's an enlargement.

EO

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Thanks for posting Ed,

Boy, have things certainly changed in the scene! Newhall yard in the background is gone, the depot has been restored, there are underground subway tunnels to board your trains, the SP itself is gone, and the Oregon-Washington Railroad & Navigation business car #184 sits on the track by the depot.

Dave