Club member Ben Sockacki has sent me another excellent lead to a video of the Skunk Train Route way back then.
The music at the beginning is a bit bleh unless you like banjo. Also, it’s a bit long (43 minutes) but worth the view if you have the time.)
The M300 was built by American Car & Foundry in 1935, Order #1432, as Seaboard Air Line RR 2026, part of a three car order, 2024 thru 2026. She was sold to the Aberdeen & Rockfish as 106. In 1951 and was purchased as Salt Lake Garfield & Western M.C.3 to replace their electric cars. Finally, in 1963 she became part of the CWR roster where she was numbered M300. So (in 2019) she’s 84 and still rolling along. Not bad eh?
Daughter Annalise, who works at Berkeley University and has access to their archives, found these pics for me:
M300 on a trestle on the Skunk Line
Interior of M300
M300 at the Depot in Fort Bragg
We were recently given an exquisite O scale model of CWR’s M80 – see pic below.
I thought I had a bunch of colour photos of M80 but can’t find ’em. You can read about M80 in our main website here. There’s also an “addendum” in this blog. I do have a couple of new to me photos of M80 taken quite a while back.
M80 at the Fort Bragg Depot
M80 at Fort Bragg
M80 crossing the Noyo
No colour photos sadly.
This is the text that our computer guru, Roger Thornburn, inserted at the beginning of this lengthy (44 minutes) video:
“Redwood Route is a 1940’s video made by the Union Lumber Company of Fort Bragg, Mendocino, CA. The video was made to promote the railroad as a tourist attraction, and the redwood tree logging business as a modern sustainable resource. It shows both the operation and maintenance of the railroad. The video was originally shot on 16 mm film and then transferred to VHS in the 1980’s and to digital format around 2005, hence some of the quality issues.”
As historian of the club I found it interesting to see how the CWR (California Western Railroad) operated up over Summit – the last big hill before you get to Willits. I also enjoyed watching how useful the Skunk train was to those who lived along the line from Fort Bragg to Willits.
PS – Roger also added the sound.
The California Western Railroad (aka The Skunk Train) used to have four railbuses – M80, M100, M200 and M300. One of them, M-200, still exists and is still running but not on the Skunk Line. She has been completely restored and she runs on the Niles Canyon Railroad (out of Sunol not too far from San Francisco).
M200 was built bythe Skagit Steel & Iron Works, MAC Division, in January 1926. Only her rear truck is powered by a diesel-hydraulic engine. She weighs 21 tons. Her history: She was built new for the Longview, Portland and Northern Railway as their #20. She became the Trona Railway #22, Trona. She was cquired by the California Western Railroad in 1941 as #M200. She was acquired unserviceable by the Niles Canyon Railroad in July 1975. Completely restored she returned to service in 1985. Her inaugural passenger service was in May 21, 1988. She is still in service as this vid shows:
Thanks to our Chief Operating Officer, Frank Davis, for the heads up on this one.
I received this e-mail from Stephanie Perdue a day or so ago:
“…….. Thank You…. and to Chuck for giving us the “VIP” experience. We had a great time and my father-in-law was thrilled to see everything. You guys are amazing and have done great work with your museum, we are honored to have met you and learned of your experiences.
I have no idea where I got this photo. It’s one of my favorite railroad pics:
View from the back window of a CWR Railbus
CWR’s (California Western Railroad) M100 Railbus wasn’t always the colour she is now – maroon. For many years she was yellow. Here’s a gallery of her in her canary finery:
