Nostalgia & History > San Diego 1972

Some smiling faces at San Diego in 1972. Remember the freight yard and freight house off to the right? How about the MOW bunk cars? That is probably Bill Dodd getting out of the pickup truck.

After the energy crunch of the '70s I went exploring in the basement of the depot. Found the circuit breaker and turned the Santa Fe sign back on. Rumor was Amtrak personnel at the depot couldn't figure out how it got on, or where the switch was to turn it back off.

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The other end of the trains. Look at all those SP cars! Crews would not load the cars that did not have side doors until other cars were filled.

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Just at dusk is a San Diegan headed north by the San Diego County Fair, later known as the San Diego County Expo, now I believe the Del Mar Fair. This would make the photo late June or early July.

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Just a little further north, taken from the overpass at Solana Beach.

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A west bound San Diegan at the east end of Sorrento.

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On closer look that may be just west of Elvira.

OUTSTANDING!!!

In 1972, I was living in the area (Spring Valley) and making bone-headed plays for the Mt Miguel High School Matidors. In between injuries, I'd head down to the station downtown and see what new stuff had come in on the SF in the early days of the pointless Arrow.

Don't suppose you shot anything on the SD&AE at the time?

Great stuff - thanks much for sharing.

Brian E

I have vague memories of the view in the first two images. I'd look over at the station area as I was walking up Broadway ( it was Broadway, wasn't it?) to my locker club. It wasn't the 7 Seas Locker Club, but I still remember that place. I would have just gotten off the "Nickel Snatcher" ferry that I'd rode over to the foot of Broadway from NAS North Island, where I was stationed on an AVR boat. This would have been about 8 or 9 years before these pictures were taken, but it looks just like what I can remember. Thanks for the refreshing of memories.

Con

Sorry, I don't believe I took any of the SD&AE.