California Trains, Train Museums, Train Rides

Trains, Trains, Trains in California!

History:

The establishment of America's transcontinental rail lines securely linked California to the rest of the country, and the far-reaching transportation systems that grew out of them during the century that followed contributed to the state's social, political, and economic development. When California was admitted as a state to the United States in 1850, and for nearly two decades thereafter, it was in many ways isolated, an outpost on the Pacific. In Promontory Summit, Utah, the last spike was driven to join the tracks of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads, completing the First Transcontinental Railroad on May 10, 1869.

four years following the Golden Spike ceremony saw the length of track in the U.S. double to (nearly 113,000 kilometers). By the turn of the century over 70,000 miles of train tracks and the completion of four subsequent transcontinental routes in the United States and one in Canada provided pathways to the Pacific Ocean.

Train museums -see California's trains, tracks and museums you can visist!


One of the top train museums in the state is the California State Railroad Museum. It is ocated in Old Sacramento. The California State Railroad Museum pays tribute to the role of the iron horse in connecting California to the rest of the country. It is a complex of historic facilities and unique attractions. Widely regarded as North America's finest rail museum www.csrmf.org


Orange Empire Railway Museum

Click on the railroad icons below for more info. RED CARS, YELLOW CARS, OTHER ... Southern California's Railway Museum. 2201 S. "A" St., Perris CA 92570 ... www.oerm.org
The California State Railroad Museum (CSRM)

Cable Car Barn and Museum
1201 Mason Street
San Francisco, CA 94108
Tel: (415) 474-1887

The Cable Car Barn and Museum includes actual, operating sheaves — the cogs of the system, running the cables under San Francisco's streets. The museum has a variety of historical displays and a gift shop. And best of all, it's free.

Historic Rail Systems in California
Angels Flight
California State Railroad Museum
California Western Railroad, also called the Skunk Train
Disneyland Railroad (three locomotives are historic)
Fillmore and Western Railway - short line used by Hollywood film industry.
Ghost Town and Calico Railway in Knott's Berry Farm
Golden Gate Railroad Museum (no excursions listed)
Los Angeles Market Street Streetcar
Napa Valley Wine Train
Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad & Transportation Museum
Niles Canyon Railway
Orange Empire Railway Museum
Pacific Coast Railroad (tourist) in Santa Margarita, California
Pacific Coast Railway, a former narrow-gauge system near San Luis Obispo, California
Pacific Southwest Railway Museum
Port of LA Waterfront Red Car, a rebuilt part of the original Pacific Electric Railway system
Poway-Midland Railroad
Roaring Camp Railroads
Sacramento RiverTrain
San Francisco cable car system
San Pedro Pacific Red Car Streetcar Line
San Francisco F Market streetcar line
San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum
Santa Clara County Railroad Museum (proposed)
Sierra Railroad
Sierra Railway - Railtown 1897 State Historic Park
Western Pacific Railroad Museum formerly the Portola Railroad Museum
Western Railway Museum
Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad
Yreka Western Railroad.