San Lorenzo Rail Road Company (California)
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Product Details
Company
San Lorenzo Rail Road Company
Certificate Type
Capital Stock
Date Issued
August 14, 1868
Canceled
No
Printer
Edward Bosqui & Co., Printers
Signatures
Hand signed
Approximate Size
9 1/2" (w) by 5 1/2" (h)
Images
Show the exact certificate you will receive
Guaranteed Authentic
Yes
Additional Details
NA
Historical Context
The story of the 36 inch gauge Santa Cruz & Felton Railroad starts in 1868 with the formation of the San Lorenzo Railroad Company. It was to be a 18 mile long horse railroad up the San Lorenzo River from Santa Cruz to Kings Ranch to move lumber to Santa Cruz. Kings Ranch was located north of Boulder Creek near the intersection of today's Highway 9 and Kings Creek road in Santa Cruz County. Surveying and other work began in May 1868. Almost immediately Isaac Cowell sued for an injunction to stop construction. He was not awarded the injunction but the case continued in the courts for six years. Meanwhile construction and grading of the railroad continued. Then in 1870 with the grading completed to Felton construction ceases probably due to lack of funding and the ongoing lawsuit.
The exact extent of the grading is not clear however one newspaper report said it was completed from Santa Cruz to Felton. There is also an intriguing drawing in the Bancroft Library titled On the Grade Near Felton. The drawing is of the area in the vicinity of the Concrete Arch on today's Santa Cruz, Big Trees, and Pacific Railroad. The library has tentatively dated the drawing 1880 but it probably dates prior to 1875 when track was laid on the grade by the SC&F.
In 1870 the San Lorenzo Valley Railroad is incorporated to construct a railroad between Santa Cruz and Boulder Creek. Directors included George Treat and Frederick Hihn. Both later major stock holders in the Santa Cruz Railroad. In 1871 this company resurveys the old San Lorenzo Railroad grade and determines that a tunnel through the hogback north of the Powder Works would cut a mile off the route. Once again the company goes dormant possibly due to the ongoing lawsuit between the San Lorenzo Railroad and Isaac Cowell.
In 1874 a new project is proposed to construct a flume to transport lumber down the San Lorenzo river 23 miles to Santa Cruz. Then in February 1874 the railroad lawsuit is resolved in the California Supreme Court. The San Lorenzo Railroad lost and had to pay damages to the property owners. In late 1874,with the lawsuit out of the way, a new group of ninety-nine investors came together to form the San Lorenzo Flume and Transportation Company and the Santa Cruz & Felton Railroad Company. Originally two separate companies with the same board of directors and overlapping goals between Santa Cruz and Felton, the Flume company later became a subsidiary of the Railroad. None of the San Lorenzo Valley Railroad officers were part of the new venture. Hihn and Treat were busy focusing on the construction of the Santa Cruz Railroad.
In January 1875 a large force of workmen began to rework the old San Lorenzo Railroad grade and dig a tunnel through the hogback as proposed by the San Lorenzo Valley Railroad. Along the way a novel method to remove redwood stumps was developed. Previously stumps had been dug out by hand. A redwood stump 15 feet in diameter above ground had a huge amount of dirt to dig out. A particularly large stump was just across the river from the Big Trees Grove. The contractor decided to try a new method. His crew dug a vertical shaft by the side of the stump, then ran a horizontal tunnel to the center of the stump where kegs of powder were placed around the tap root. The hole was filled in and fuse lit. The stump reportedly shot three hundred feet in the air and came down clear of the railroad right of way at half the cost to dig out the stump.
The winter rains were delaying the supply of lumber for the railroad but by April things began to move again. The Pacific Bridge Company contracted to build the railroad wharf at Santa Cruz. Flume construction began from the northern end near King's Ranch and expanded towards Felton. The initial rolling stock was scheduled to be delivered in May. By July 1875 the construction crews consisted mostly of track layers and carpenters, with another crew tunneling the hogback. By September the tunnel was complete and the flume had reached Felton. All was ready to open the railroad some seven years after the San Lorenzo Railroad had begun construction.
On October 7, 1875 the Santa Cruz & Felton Railroad Officers and invited guests took a trial trip from the beach at Santa Cruz up the river to Felton. Toasts were given and the construction celebrated before returning to Santa Cruz. On October 13, 1875 the railroad officially opened in grand style with a crowd upwards of 1,500 people in attendance.
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