On August 4, 1852, the Sacramento Valley Railroad was incorporated. Construction, however, did not begin until February 1855 due to financial issues. Theodore Judah was hired in May 1854 as the Chief Engineer to survey a proposed rail line from Sacramento to Marysville by way of Folsom, and William Tecumseh Sherman became the Vice President of the company in August 1855. The rail line in August 1855 only ran from the foot of R Street to 17th Street. The railroad reached Brighton (just south of p

On February 12, 1855, construction began on the rail line, starting at R and 3rd Streets in Sacramento, for the Sacramento Valley Railroad. This was the beginning of the first rail line in California. The railroad company was incorporated in 1852 and Theodore Judah was hired in May 1854 to survey a proposed rail line from Sacramento to Marysville by way of Folsom. Due to financial issues, grading did not occur until February 1855 and laying of tracks began in August, around the same time William

Have you ever wondered why diesel-electric locomotives replaced steam locomotives? In this video we compare the advantages of a diesel electric locomotive versus a steam locomotive using Locomotives 93 and 109. Locomotive 93 was built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) specifically for the Nevada Northern in 1909. The White Pine News’ headline was “Big Engine Coming.” She was built and delivered to the Enginehouse in the video in January 1909. Her wheel arrangement is 2-8-0. That means sh