Stations: Molino

The Southern Pacific Railroad did not employ the most creative naming scheme on its Loma Prieta Branch. Three stations have Spanish names, three are descriptive, and one is named after a property owner. Molino was no exception: a Spanish name describing a place, specifically a mill. However, Molino lived two lives, once in the mid-1880s and again from 1911. In both cases, it was often called Molino Junction since it marked the place where a spur line broke off from the branch line, initially to access the shingle mill of the Pacific Improvement Company situated on a small rocky floodplain, later the site of the Loma Prieta Lumber Company’s main mill.

The only known photograph of Molino in its first iteration, showing the Loma Prieta Branch to the left and the shingle mill spur to the right, with no facilities other than a station sign, circa 1885. [Courtesy Timothy Hopkins Collection, Stanford University – colorized using MyHeritage]

The site of Molino was first reached by Loma Prieta Railroad construction crews around August 1883, making it the oldest station on the line. Crews divided their focus at Molino, with the main force of men working on the branch line and a smaller force grading a 320-foot-long spur across Aptos Creek to the shingle mill, located on the property of Timothy Hopkins. No railroad documentation of the station from this period survives, but supporting evidence strongly suggests that it was officially recognized by the Southern Pacific Railroad when it took direct control over the route in 1884. A single photograph taken about 1885 shows a large sign marking the station, but no other facilities.

The shingle mill on the Molino spur, 1884. [Courtesy California State Library – colorized using MyHeritage]

During its lifetime, the spur leading from Molino was in constant year-round use. The shingle mill was the largest such operation in the county’s history to date. Daily operations were overseen by Frank Simmons on behalf of the Loma Prieta Lumber Company. The facility ran day and night throughout 1885, which was unusual at the time, and it produced around fourteen million shingles that year. The mill was supported by a meandering narrow-gauge railroad that ran south, crisscrossing Aptos Creek several times until reaching the edge of the southern edge of Rancho Soquel Augmentation, near today’s steel bridge over the creek.

Everything changed for Molino following a disastrous fire at the Loma Prieta Lumber Company’s primary lumber mill further down the line at Monte Vista on May 13, 1885. Rather than rebuild, the company decided to relocate its mill south to the site of the shingle mill. Preparation of the site commenced in spring 1886 and work on a new dam across Aptos Creek began in August under the direction of Kinsman Brothers of San Francisco. New trackage were built from Molino to the mill site, and the equipment from the old mill was moved in the winter after the year’s lumber operations had ended. By the time the new mill opened in spring 1887, Molino had vanished as a recognized station, though nothing had actually changed at the station’s site. The switch remained and the sign likely survived for many more years, though it was gone by the late 1900s. The location never appeared on timetables or in station books during these years, though it was often included on maps, including those published by third parties.

Southern Pacific Railroad radii survey of the Loma Prieta Branch from Molino to Loma Prieta, circa 1908. [Courtesy California State Library]

The longevity of the name Molino proved itself when it was incorporated into the name of the Molino Timber Company in 1910. In June 1911, the station reappeared as a formal station and was finally included in official Southern Pacific documentation. Curiously, Molino was listed with a 156-foot-long spur, a feature not present in the area immediately around the switch. This suggests that the station may have expanded to encompass a larger area stretching as far as 0.25 miles to the south, where logging activity continued even as the Loma Prieta Lumber Company wound down operations at its Aptos Creek mill.

In the spring of 1901, German immigrant and Aptos farmer Lorenz Schilling and his son John took out a contract from Timothy Hopkins to cut timber along the tracks south of Molino. Although all of the surrounding area had been harvested seventeen years earlier, the trees lining the Loma Prieta Branch had been allowed to remain standing due to a dream by Southern Pacific’s investors that Loma Prieta would one day host a prosperous mountain resort. In hindsight and with the commercial potential of the Loma Prieta Branch reaching its end, it became clear to the railroad that any chance for a profitable tourism industry on the line had passed. As a result, the remaining trees were marked for felling.

Mules hauling wood at the Schillings' camp, circa 1903. [Courtesy Aptos History Museum – colorized using MyHeritage]

The Schillings owned a pack of mules and used them to haul out splitstuff, which they cut where the trees fell. To support the operation, they built a workers’ camp beside the railroad tracks in a clearing south of Molino on the other side of a cut. It included a blacksmith shop, cabins, a cookhouse, a barn and hay store, and a supply shed. On the west side of the tracks across from the camp, Lorenz and John each built a cabin for himself and his family, where each lived for the next four years. Drinking water was provided from a pipeline extended from the village of Loma Prieta, with Spring Creek its ultimate source. The railroad built a short spur on the east side of the branch line into the camp so flatcars could be loaded without interrupting traffic continuing north. The operation at the Schillings’ camp ran through the summer of 1904. The spur track was left in place after the family closed shop.

Molino with dual-gauged tracks, circa 1915. [Composite of three photographs, courtesy Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History, the Woods Mattingly Collections at the Aptos History Museum, and Santa Cruz Public Libraries – colorized using MyHeritage]

The Molino Timber Company converted the abandoned camp in late 1910 into a construction camp for making flatcars for its narrow-gauge railroad that ran along China Ridge. As a result, the location also served as the company’s southern end of track, though the standard-gauge tracks continued to Aptos. When the company was running at its peak in the mid-1910s, piles of splitstuff were stacked along either side of the tracks for nearly a mile north of the camp. This was never the intention, but market fluctuations and varying yields of splitstuff meant sometimes the supply far outstripped demand, leaving these stacks of unpurchased product waiting for a buyer. Molino Timber Company crews unloaded their freight and stacked it in such a way that it could be easily loaded onto a Southern Pacific flatcar whenever an order arrived. While this process led to double handling, it allowed the company to free up its small fleet of custom-made narrow-gauge flatcars quickly and avoided the need for a lumber yard, since most freight shipped out directly to customers via Southern Pacific.

Splitstuff stacked along the Loma Prieta Branch, circa 1915. [Courtesy Aptos History Museum – colorized using MyHeritage]

Although the Molino Timber Company ceased working on China Ridge in late 1917 and went out of business completely at the end of 1919, Molino continued to be used by the Loma Prieta Lumber Company in its logging operations along Bridge Creek. It produced a mixture of lumber and splitstuff, which allowed the company to process felled timber more efficiently. To save money, the company acquired the narrow-gauge rolling stock of the Molino Timber Company, supplementing it with a second locomotive and more flatcars. This meant that the bridge over Aptos Creek at Molino had to be dual-gauged to allow the narrow-gauge trains to reach the mill, which the company rebuilt to support this new project. For five summers from 1917, lumber crews cut down every accessible redwood tree standing on either side of Bridge Creek and its tributaries. And then, sometime in the middle of the summer of 1921, the last tree was cut and fellers found themselves without anything to do. The lumber company was done with the Aptos Forest once and for all, and all that was left was to clean up.

A mule team beside piles of splitstuff at the former Schillings' camp, circa 1919. [Courtesy University of California, Santa Cruz – colorized using MyHeritage]

In an abstract way, Molino became the most important station on the Loma Prieta Branch after 1921. There was no point in continuing along the branch line to Loma Prieta, and the tracks beyond had been abandoned years earlier. The extremely limited traffic that ran on the line—mostly a rail speeder car operated by the property’s caretaker—only stopped at the mill site, accessible on the spur that split off at Molino. In 1925, Southern Pacific announced the end of all official service to the line, effective January 31, 1926. The Loma Prieta Lumber Company used this opportunity to remove the last of the uncut timber, lumber, and splitstuff from the mill property, as well as the usable machinery and other equipment still stored there. Molino was abandoned at the same time as the rest of the branch on February 19, 1928. The station’s site is still accessible today and can be found where the Loma Prieta Grade Trail separates from the Aptos Creek Fire Road within The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park. The site of the Shillings’ camp and its spur is now the Porter Family Picnic Area.

Citations & Credits:

• Gilbert, M. E., ed. Santa Cruz County: A Faithful Reproduction in Print and Photography: Climate, Capabilities and Beauties. San Francisco: H. S. Crocker Company, 1896.
• Hamman, Rick. California Central Coast Railways. Second edition. Santa Cruz, CA: Otter B Books, 2002.
• Interstate Commerce Commission. Finance Docket No. 6615 "Abandonment of Branch Line by Southern Pacific." January 20, 1928.
• Powell, Ronald G. The Reign of the Lumber Barons: Part Two of the History of Rancho Soquel Augmentation. Santa Cruz, CA: Zayante Publishing, 2021.
• Powell, Ronald G. The Shadow of Loma Prieta: Part Three of the History of Rancho Soquel Augmentation. Santa Cruz, CA: Zayante Publishing, 2022.
• Southern Pacific Railroad Company. Miscellaneous records. 1887–1930.
• Various articles from the Santa Cruz Evening News, Santa Cruz Sentinel, and Watsonville Pajaronian. 1883–1912.

Stations: Brookdale

Few communities in the Santa Cruz Mountains are more shrouded in mystery and confusion than Brookdale. The village began life as Clear Creek, a descriptive name applied to the fast-running mountain stream that runs down the east side of Ben Lomond Mountain until emptying into the San Lorenzo River about a mile south of Boulder Creek. In the 1870s, the flume was constructed through the area, a likely site for several of the more scenic photographs since the structure was situated relatively low to the ground here. In addition, a feeder flume was erected up Clear Creek. It was along this feeder that the first logging activity in the area that would become Brookdale began.

A Southern Pacific train approaching Brookdale with passengers waiting to board, circa 1915. [Courtesy George Pepper – colorized using MyHeritage]

In March 1880, McKoy & Duffey acquired stumpage rights to the Ellsworth tract on Clear Creek. The property itself was likely owned by a lumber combine of Grover & Company and James P. Pierce, who hired itinerant mill crews to harvest timber tracts outside their core domain. Andrew Duffey left the partnership in March 1882 to pursue a new enterprise leaving sole ownership of the mill to Hubbard Wilson McKoy, who closed it in 1883 to take over management of the Central Hotel in Felton. Duffey was not done with the area, though. The Comstock brothers, led by Jared W. Comstock, joined with Edward P. Reed and leased property from Pierce a half mile up Clear Creek in early 1888. They brought Duffey on as a partner in October. Their mill was capable of producing 15,000 board feet of lumber per day. It benefited from the replacement of the flume by the Felton & Pescadero Railroad—though a spur beside Clear Creek is not mentioned in Southern Pacific documents until 1892, it seems likely that it was installed at the same time the mill opened in spring 1889. The Duffey & Comstock partnership only lasted a single season since Jared Comstock died in October 1889.

Survey of Grover & Logan's properties at Clear Creek shortly before the start of development, based on E. D. Perry's August 1894 survey. Reed's Spur (called Reid Switch) features prominently in the top-left quadrant. [Courtesy Santa Cruz County GIS]

Reed’s Spur survived the collapse of Duffey & Comstock and Duffey continued to run the mill there in partnership with Frank W. Simmons until September 1891. In January 1891, Reed purchased the property outright from Pierce’s Ben Lomond Land and Lumber Company and he may have taken over the mill in 1892 following Duffey’s departure. In April 1895, he hired Irvin T. Bloom and Patrick Patton to manage the mill, which ran with a crew of forty men. At the same time, the Grovers began milling lumber at a site further to the north at a bend in the San Lorenzo River. The economic recession in the mid-1890s led to the brief closure of the mill but it reopened in 1897 with a focus on clearing the remaining standing timber in the vicinity of today’s Brookdale Lodge. However, by this time, the area had grown in prominence as a camping and picnic destination, so the company wisely decided to retain the larger trees and hired W. H. Booth to clear the undergrowth, specifically in the area between the river and the County Road along either side of Clear Creek.

Feeder flume over Clear Creek, circa 1884. [Courtesy University of California, Santa Cruz – colorized using MyHeritage]

The Grovers’ decision reflected a fundamental shift in attitude toward the area around Clear Creek. Whereas just a decade earlier, clearcutting marketable timber was the only reason for owning land in the San Lorenzo Valley, the economic turbulence of the 1890s paired with a growing concern that the natural beauty of the valley was being destroyed led several lumber firms to pause operations and reconsider their long-term goals. Much worked in Clear Creek’s favor—high somewhat flat shelves sat on either side of the San Lorenzo River, creating five areas perfect for campgrounds and vacation cottages. Furthermore, the railroad passed directly through all five areas, meaning access would be simple. And the lumber firms had not entirely cleared all of the territory, so towering redwood and fir trees still stood tall. On top of those benefits, the river meandered slowly and eddied in multiple places, creating several ideal locations to erect seasonal dams for fishing, boating, and swimming. The spectacle of the area was captured in early photographs and camping became one of its hallmarks.

View of the San Lorenzo River at Brookdale, circa 1910. [Courtesy ebay – colorized using MyHeritage]

From the late 1880s, groups of Santa Cruz, Oakland, San Francisco, and San José elite gathered together each year at camps strung along the San Lorenzo River. The three-mile stretch between Ben Lomond and Boulder Creek was the most popular destination as it was the least developed and a few old groves of trees had withstood the threat of the axe. Two of the earliest named camps were Camp Thunder and Camp Lightning, led by prominent Santa Cruz families, both established in 1887 about a mile south of Clear Creek. The first major camp on Clear Creek was established in July 1890 as Camp Yelland, named after its most famous attendee, artist Raymond Dabb Yelland. For three summers, Oakland and Santa Cruz elite bivouacked on either side of the creek at the camp. News of camp sites around Clear Creek goes quiet over the following years, possibly because of the activities of the nearby mill. A fire in April 1897 burned part of the mill and lumber yard, as well as much of the remaining timber tract, prompting Bloom & Patton to close the mill. Shortly afterwards, James Harvey Logan took over management of the property for the Grovers and began laying out a formalized campground on Grover Island.

Narrow gauge tracks south of Reed's Spur, May 5, 1901. Photo by Henry King Nourse. [Courtesy California State Library – colorized using MyHeritage]

Having just retired as a superior court judge, Logan shifted roles quickly and was elected an officer of Grover & Company in June 1897 alongside Stephen F. Grover, Lafayette F. Grover, Joseph Schwarts, and H. E. Makinney. He took a personal interest in Clear Creek and erected a country home there in April 1898, from which he could oversee the development of the company’s mountain resort. Over the next three years, Logan and Stephen Grover erected cottages for themselves and their families, using still-living trees to help support the rustic structures. They also sold lots close to the river to Alameda families, who also built cottages, platforms for tents, and other amenities. By 1902, the seasonal community had grown large enough to justify the addition of a post office, which opened in April under the name Brookdale.

The Cascades, James H. Logan's first summer house in Brookdale, circa 1903. [Courtesy Scott Tucker – colorized using MyHeritage]

The unusual name raised some eyebrows. A writer for the Evening Sentinel misread the announcement as “Brookville” and asked: “Why not call it Loganville or Groverville?” The name’s origin, though, has older roots. In 1887, a Camp Brookdale arose in an unspecified location near Boulder Creek—possibly at Clear Creek, which was associated with its neighbor at the time. This camp returned in 1889 before disappearing, possibly to be replaced by Camp Yelland the next year. In 1897, grocer John B. Bias’ Brookdale Cottage appeared on Olive’s Sulphur Springs on a tributary of Soquel Creek, not far from the Grovers’ primary mill. Bias had previously been a business partner with Lafayette Grover, Stephen Grover’s son, in 1892 and the two ran in the same social circles. Ultimately, the name was descriptive, possibly brought over by the Grovers from their home state of Maine, where both “brook” and “dale” were far more common terms than in California. It likely gained increased notoriety, though, due to Brookdale Farm of New Jersey, which was widely publicized in newspapers throughout the 1880s and 1800s as one of the foremost stables for breeding and training racehorses. Thus, contrary to popular belief, the name Brookdale was likely chosen by the Grovers rather than Logan.

A Southern Pacific passenger train at Brookdale Station, circa 1915. [Courtesy Grant Correll – colorized using MyHeritage]

The evolution of the industrial settlement of Clear Creek to the resort destination of Brookdale readily embraced by the railroad. Reed’s Spur first appeared as a flag-stop on employee timetables in April 1902 and was renamed Brookdale in October 1903. A single-story passenger shelter with an agent booth was added shortly afterwards, with a small freight platform installed just to the south. The existence of this platform and a short-lived freight shed suggests that Grover and Logan still anticipated some industrial revenue to derive from Brookdale, at least in the short term. The 239-foot-long spur also remained and was even extended to 400 feet during the standard-gauging of the Boulder Creek Branch in 1908. But retaining this feature can be easily explained since several photographs show passenger cars and excursion trains parked on the spur to keep the branch line clear for regular rail traffic. The station was staffed seasonally, functioning as a scheduled stop from late spring to early autumn and as a flag-stop the rest of the year.

Map of Brookdale, Santa Cruz Co., Cal., published by the Union Litho Company for James H. Logan, 1910. [Courtesy Library of Congress]

Brookdale became a tourism boomtown. Grover Island was sold in late 1902 to Arthur H. Breed, city auditor of Oakland, who renamed it Huckleberry Island and quickly began selling lots to hand-selected friends. Between the County Road and the river, fifteen lots were laid out and four permanent cottages soon erected. On the west side of the County Road, Lafayette Grover enlarged and expanded his summer residence Minnehaha, named after a character in a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, into a boarding house to be run by Augusta “Gussie” Heubeling. And as part of their first promotion drive, Grover and Logan installed electrical lighting, sewage, and telephone services throughout the community. To manage this new resort and oversee property sales, the partners founded the Brookdale Land Company around May 1903, with Logan serving as site manager and Grover keeping the books and managing advertising. They went their separate ways at the end of 1905, leaving Logan in sole charge of Brookdale.

Entrance to The Brookdale, circa 1920. [Courtesy UC Santa Cruz – colorized using MyHeritage]

The same year, The Brookdale opened as the first dedicated hotel in the hamlet. Madame N.M. Du Quoy ran the hotel from 1905 until 1910 on behalf of the Brookdale Land Company. In early 1911, Logan sold most of the remaining undeveloped land in Brookdale to John Dubuis, while he sold his interest in the developed parts of the community to the Santa Cruz Emporium Company, run by William M. Aydelotte, in February, including The Brookdale, the town’s general store, the Chateau, the Cuckoo Cottage, Rose Cottage, Near Spring Cottage, the community dance hall, a stable, and a warehouse. At the same time, Du Quoy bought Logan’s home on Cascade Street—formerly The Cascades and renamed by her Burlwood—and converted it into a new hotel. Logan’s interest in Brookdale should have ended with these sales, but Dubuis defaulted on his payments in early 1912 and Logan petitioned to have the sale rendered void. Instead, Dubuis’ property went up for auction in March and was sold to Theodore A. Bell. By 1914, Bell and Logan must have come to some agreement as both began selling property in the area and Logan began the erection of the two-story commercial building at the corner of Pacific Street, where the general store and post office later relocated.

Brookdale passenger shelter and office with a keg on a handcart outside, circa 1918. [Courtesy George Pepper – colorized using MyHeritage]

Brookdale held steady for the next decade as a vacation spot for travelers wishing to remain within easy reach of the Bay Area. Both trains and automobiles brought visitors to the mountain town, and the village evolved into a seasonal town complete with stores, homes, and amenities. But this also deprived the hamlet of the that made it desirable, namely untamed wilderness and rustic charm. Thus, in 1923, Dr. F. K. Camp of Pasadena purchased the aged Brookdale Hotel and began a comprehensive renovation and expansion. He demolished much of the old resort and in its place built 34 cottages of several rooms each featuring tiled baths, heating, lighting, and private garages. On the County Road, he erected a rustic lobby flanked by redwood columns, walled with creek stones, and heated by a floor-to-ceiling fireplace. Over Clear Creek, he created a sprawling dining room divided across three terraces and intersected by a waterfall and the babbling stream. And opposite the dining room he installed a pair of concrete swimming pools, steam heated and lighted from under water. The Brookdale Mountain Lodge and Redwood Terrace Gardens opened to the public on May 18, 1924 to great fanfare. Over the next several years, Hollywood celebrities visited the hotel and dined at the Brook Room, making the hotel famous on the Central Coast.

Colorized postcard of the Brookdale Lodge's Brook Room, circa 1924. [Courtesy ebay]

By this point, the importance of the railroad to the community had reached its end. The Brookdale Lodge was primarily a destination for automobile drivers cruising the highways of California on a never-ending journey of adventure and discovery. The train was just old fashioned, and every year fewer and fewer people were taking it to Brookdale. Passenger service along the Boulder Creek Branch ended sometime after summer 1930 and never resumed. All public transportation to Brookdale after this point was by Pacific Greyhound buses. When the tracks were removed in the spring of 1934, most residents probably sighed in relief since it meant an end to the occasional freight trains interrupting their rural solitude.

The site of Brookdale Station today, looking southeast down the right-of-way, October 3, 2013. [Photo by Derek R. Whaley]

The station shelter was sold at auction and may have been converted into a cottage. One of the station signs eventually found its way to the San Lorenzo Valley Museum, though it has been shortened on both sides to allow it to fit atop a fireplace mantle. Most of the right-of-way was sold but small sections survive over Clear Creek, on the banks of the San Lorenzo River, and on Huckleberry Island. After weathering the Great Depression, Dr. Camp sold the Brookdale Lodge in 1945 and it soon after passed to Barney Marrow, who owned the Brookdale Inn across the County Road. During Marrow’s years of ownership, the lodge gained an unsavory reputation that stayed with the hotel to the present. The lodge continued to change hands over the decades and suffered substantial fires in 1956, 2005, and 2009, leading to its condemnation in 2011. The Brookdale Lodge is now under the ownership of Pravin and Naina Patel and reopened in July 2025 following many years of extensive renovation work.

Citations & Credits:

• Bender, Henry E., Jr. “SP Boulder Creek Branch (ex-South Pacific Coast Ry.)” [SP22A]. April 2019.
• Chown, Jon. “New Chapter Starts at Brookdale Lodge,” Times Publishing Group Inc. August 4, 2025.
• Gibson, Ross Eric. “Historical Memories Haunt Brookdale.” From San Jose Mercury News, 10/20/1993, 4B.
• San Francisco Chronicle, Santa Cruz Evening News, Evening Sentinel, Morning Sentinel, Sentinel, and Surf, various articles, 1887–1924.
• Southern Pacific Railroad, various material, 1892–1931.
• Whaley, Derek R. Santa Cruz Trains: Railroads of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Santa Cruz, CA: Zayante Publishing, 2015.

Companies: Maywood Manufacturing Company

Everett W. Eyer liked the name of his hometown so much that he brought it with him to Santa Cruz. In 1931, he began producing commercial-grade unfinished furniture from a small workshop in the south Los Angeles suburb of Maywood. The Great Depression caused prices for finished goods soar making do-it-yourself furniture a popular alternative. Maywood at the time was a hive of activity with small-scale industries. But by the end of the World War II, Eyer found himself crowded out. He decided it was time to find a more spacious venue for his business.

Everett Eyer inspecting an unfinished chair with Ed Scofield, plant superintendent, published in the Santa Cruz Sentinel August 3, 1955. [Colorized using MyHeritage]

It is not known why Eyer chose Santa Cruz over other options, but upon his arrival in December 1949, he rented space in the newly-enlarged Coast Drum & Box Company warehouse on Mission Street near Swift Street. This site was ideal since it already had a Southern Pacific freight spur, allowing him to ship out products quickly and frequently. However, his rental agreement was only for a short time and by early 1951, the Coast Drum & Box Company wanted him out. Eyer, dependent on railroad access for the profitability of his venture, began searching for a new home along the line.

Maywood Manufacturing's new complex under construction on Thompson Avenue, published in the Santa Cruz Sentinel–News August 9, 1951. [Colorized using MyHeritage]

After a few fruitless months of searching, Fred Morris, a member of the Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce, convinced Eyer that it would be better to build a custom warehouse beside the tracks. Eyer recruited new partners in his venture—George S. Morden, Reginald Moore “Pat” Booker, and Mannis N. Dick—who together incorporated Maywood Manufacturing Company, Inc. They purchased 5.5 acres of land at 1115 Thompson Avenue in Live Oak from Albert Knauer. The location had room for a 13,200 square foot warehouse and plant, as well as a small lumber mill. A railroad spur was installed around September, directly paralleling the main warehouse. The entire facility cost the firm around $30,000 to build.

Workers preparing a workshop within the new Thompson Avenue facility, published in the Santa Cruz Sentinel–News August 9, 1951. [Colorized using MyHeritage]

The company picked up a new partner in July 1952 in the form of Lottie Henry. Only three years later, though, in April 1955, Morden and Dick left the firm leading Eyer, Booker, and Henry to divide it into three entities: Maywood Manufacturing, Maywood Properties, and Maywood Milling Company. Shortly afterwards, an entirely new board of directors took over, including Kenneth Ferguson, Robert J. Pedder, George A. Andrews, Jr., A. L. McDonnell, and H. R. Ketterbaugh. Eyer remained as manager, guiding the company through its first decade in Santa Cruz. He ran a staff of around 70 employees and produced about 350 separate items, including chairs, desks, cabinets, and dressers. In August 1955, he oversaw a massive $75,000 expansion that saw the addition of over 30,000 additional square feet of space for a conveyor belt system, processing rooms, and a painting annex. The company also expanded into select finished products.

Maywood Manufacturing advertisements, published in the Santa Cruz Sentinel February 10, 1970 (left) and February 28, 1971 (right).

In March 1959, William H. Raley took over all three companies as president and manager. He remained at the helm for nearly two decades. By this point, Maywood was producing over 50,000 pieces of furniture a year and selling from more than 600 stores across Central and Northern California. Raley expanded distribution to Hawaii and Alaska, and began trialing plastic lamination techniques. While most products were produced using ponderosa pine, Raley began importing hardwood from Taiwan for use in stools.

L. S. Melindy and Dale Shultz working a machine at Maywood Manufacturing, published in the Santa Cruz SentinelAugust 3, 1955. [Colorized using MyHeritage]

Maywood was not immune to problems. The company suffered countless burglaries and several fires, though none of them were overly successful or damaging. By the mid-1970s, people were turning away from do-it-yourself furniture. Cheap imported furniture and increased family incomes meant that the target market for Raley’s firm was no longer profitable. On September 2, 1977, he sold the business to two couples, James H. and V. Joyce Elliot, and John T. and Caroline K. Shook, all of San José, but they could not keep it afloat. In early 1980, Maywood went bankrupt and all of its equipment and chattel was put up for auction.

A Maywood Manufacturing worker preparing a dresser for shipment, published in the Santa Cruz Sentinel February 2, 1968. [Colorized using MyHeritage]

In February 1981, Tom Bowers purchased the property and turned the warehouse into Bowers Park, a light industrial business park. It was probably at this time or shortly afterwards that the railroad spur was removed. Among the first occupants of the former warehouse were SAE Automotive Enterprises, Microalgae International Sales Corp (Miscorp), Light Force Spirulina Company, and Santa Cruz Cabinets.

Geo-Coordinates & Access Rights:
36.968, -121.971
1115 Thompson Avenue, Live Oak

The site of the Maywood Manufacturing Company freight spur began at the end of Thompson Avenue and went west alongside the south side of the warehouse still located at 1115. All evidence of the spur has been either removed or buried beneath dirt and asphalt. Bowers Park remains in use today and is home to several light industrial firms.

Citations & Credits:

• Santa Cruz Evening News, Santa Cruz Sentinel, Santa Cruz Sentinel–News, and The Daily Breeze, 1931–1981.
• Southern Pacific Railroad records.

Stations: Monte Vista

The Loma Prieta Branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad is the only line in the Santa Cruz Mountains where the terminus was substantially moved. Yet both of its terminal stations were given the same name: Monte Vista. Spanish for “mountain view,” Monte Vista is a romantic name for what was, in reality, a pair of industrial stops surrounded by steep canyon walls far up Aptos Creek. While its second iteration did feature a scenic tourist destination in Five Finger Falls, where the creek cascades down a cliff wall to a pond below, neither stop was intended for regular passenger service.

Southern Pacific No. 80 "Jupiter" with a passenger car at the first Monte Vista, ca 1884. [Courtesy University of California, Santa Cruz – colorized using MyHeritage]

Reflecting the branch’s industrial purpose, Monte Vista did not appear in Southern Pacific agency books until 1887 and employee timetables until 1892. The 0.8-mile-long railroad route from the village of Loma Prieta to the Loma Prieta Lumber Company’s mill at Monte Vista was completed on March 14, 1884, which neatly coincided with the consolidation of the Loma Prieta Railroad and Santa Cruz Railroad into the new Pajaro & Santa Cruz Railroad. The mill itself began operations earlier on June 1, 1884 at a site that straddled Aptos Creek where the creek turns sharply north. The grade down to the mill was steep but another track wrapped above and behind the mill, where logs could easily be dumped into the millpond. Other sidings and spurs ran throughout the mill’s grounds to allow for the efficient loading of flatcars by lumberjacks.

"Jupiter" with a flatcar and two boxcars at the first Monte Vista, ca 1884. [Pajaro Valley Historical Association – colorized using MyHeritage]

When it opened, the mill at Monte Vista was an industrial marvel. It featured Santa Cruz County’s first band saw, which was capable of producing 50,000 board feet of lumber per day. The mill itself required eighteen men to run it, while another 130 men cut trees in the surrounding forest, hauled logs to the mill, and ran the yard. In total, over 200 workers and their families lived within the vicinity of the mill, in cabins on the hillsides and in the boarding house. The cookhouse and manager’s office were also located at the mill on the east bank of the creek. During its first two years in operation, the mill used oxen teams to haul logs to the mill, but it began supplementing these with pack mules and horses from 1885. Also, rather than using old machinery, the company purchased entirely new boilers, pumps, tanks, and saws, which increased the efficiency of the mill and the quality of its products. The mill suffered some problems, though, most notably the small size of its millpond, which restricted the number of logs it could process.

The original mill at Monte Vista, probably just before the start of the 1885 season owing to the lack lumber and the general cleanliness of the yard. [Aptos History Museum – colorized using MyHeritage]

The successes of Monte Vista were short lived. On May 13, 1885, the entire mill burned to the ground only two days after opening for its second season. Only the boilers survived, while $40,000 worth of lumber, rolling stock, and structures were destroyed. Despite a lack of insurance, the company set out to rebuild the structure with what they had available. With finances tight, the company focused on rebuilding the primary mill leaving everything else, such as rebuilding the shingle and planing mills, aside. Logs to both rebuild the mill and become its first stock came from the surviving logs in the millpond. Reconstruction of the mill continued through 1885 while a new mill was built at Pajaro Station to process excess lumber that could not be handled at the ruined Monte Vista site. The latter mill reopened in a limited capacity at some point in July 1885, though it was focused primarily on rough-cut lumber that would be further processed elsewhere.

Hydrography and trackage in the vicinity of the mill at Monte Vista, 1884–1888, by Ronald G. Powell.

The mill at Monte Vista reopened at its previous capacity, albeit with a lower quality of product, on April 27, 1886. At the same time, construction on a new mill south of Loma Prieta began and Chinese grading crews began work extending the Loma Prieta Branch north of Monte Vista. Efficiency gradually increased until mid-June, when a second train was required to transfer lumber between Monte Vista and the mill at Pajaro. When the season closed in October, the mill at Monte Vista was dismantled and its parts moved to the new location on the east bank of Aptos Creek on the site of the company’s Molino shingle mill. Monte Vista would remain as a minor operation until late May or early June 1887, when the last of its machinery was moved to the new mill.

"Jupiter" pushing six flatcars of logs and two excursion cars down the grade from Monte Vista, ca 1888. [Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History – colorized using MyHeritage]

On March 14, 1888, the 1.4-mile-long extension north was completed bringing the Loma Prieta Branch 6.4 miles into the Aptos Forest. Construction to this point was deadly, with several workers dying in explosions and landslides through the narrow-gap known as Hell’s Gate. The extension avoided using expensive prefabricated bridges and instead opted for locally-sourced redwood structures cut by the mill itself. The name Monte Vista was moved to this new terminal station and would remain here for over a decade.

Photo montage showing four scenes around Monte Vista, including (clockwise) a group photograph of fellers and site workers, "Jupiter" collecting logs at a transloading site just north of the camp, oxen milling on the tracks at the camp, and an overview of the camp showing trackage, skid roads, and structures, ca 1889. [Santa Cruz MAH – colorized using MyHeritage]

Unlike its predecessor, the second Monte Vista only supported a shingle mill, used to process splitstuff, and a large worker camp for housing fellers and hauling teams working in the surrounding hills. As such, it had several transloading stations for transferring logs to waiting flatcars, and it had corrals to house oxen, mules, and horses overnight. Southern Pacific kept a small crew and workshop at the station to service rolling stock, while the lumber company had an office there. The camp also featured telephone and telegraph facilities, a Wells Fargo Express and post office, and a company store.

A hunter posing beside Aptos Creek near Monte Vista, ca 1895. [Pajaro Valley Historical Association – colorized using MyHeritage]

Because of the proximity of Five Finger Falls and its status as a tourist destination, Monte Vista became a popular excursion destination for local and Bay Area tourists. Special excursion trains ran up the line every summer, dropping off tourists for an adventurous afternoon or an overnight stay. To support this, a dance hall was erected nearby and a relatively flat area alongside Aptos Creek was converted into a campground. There may have even been a small saloon and hotel as well as guest cabins. Southern Pacific, in response, established a small depot just to the south of the workers’ camp. Visitors could fish, hunt, visit the waterfalls and White’s Lagoon, or walk through the parts of the Aptos Forest that had not yet been visited by the woodcutter’s axe.

Workers posing on logs loaded onto flatcars behind the "Jupiter" at Monte Vista camp, ca 1890. [Courtesy University of California, Santa Cruz – colorized using MyHeritage]

For the remainder of the year, Monte Vista was strictly an industrial worksite. Few families lived around the camp—most remained around Loma Prieta, where the school there could cater to the children’s educational needs. Southern Pacific maintained a water tower at Monte Vista as well as several sidings and spurs to shunt rolling stuck around. Cars operating further up the line may have used a combination of locomotives, steam donkeys, and gravity to shift due to the steep grades. A small millpond sat just north of the camp, probably extending from the pond at Five Finger Falls. Ox teams were used by lumber crews due to the steep meandering gullies that wound their way up the mountainsides. The teams dragged logs chained together to the pond or to one of the transloading sites, depending on their ultimate fate.

Hydrography and trackage in the vicinity of Monte Vista camp, 1888–1902, by Ronald G. Powell.

The camp at Monte Vista operated with several interruptions due to poor market conditions from May 1888 to March 1899. During this time, the track was extended another 0.68 miles to a landing where Aptos Creek breaks into three tributary streams. It may have been continued further, but this is where Southern Pacific officially ended the Loma Prieta Branch. Plans were put in place to extend the line via a tunnel to Hinckley Gulch, but the expensive cost of maintaining the Loma Prieta Branch to Monte Vista combined with the poor economic climate shelved these plans. A further complication came in late March 1899 when a massive storm hit the Santa Cruz Mountains and washed out two bridges and caused several slides on the road to Monte Vista. Though expensive to repair, Southern Pacific restored the line and it continued operating passenger and freight service to Monte Vista until November 20, 1899.

Oxen with a log train at the transloading station just north of Monte Vista camp with few empty flatcars in the foreground, ca 1895. [Porter Family Collection, Santa Cruz MAH – colorized using MyHeritage]

After the annual closure of the mills in 1899, Monte Vista was disestablished as a station by Southern Pacific. The station structure and other facilities were torn down or removed, while the Loma Prieta Lumber Company shut down its recreational facilities, including the dance hall, saloon, and related structures. The tracks themselves were retained in case Southern Pacific decided to build the proposed tunnel to Hinckley Gulch, or some other need arose. However, there was very little timber left to cut in the hills above Monte Vista except that which could not be reached from the camp. By early 1900, Southern Pacific had decided to formally abandon the trackage north the village of Loma Prieta, marking the end of large-scale logging along Aptos Creek.

Postcard of a hunter posing below Five Finger Falls near Monte Vista camp, ca 1892. [Aptos History Museum – colorized using MyHeritage]

Throughout 1901, lumber company crews dismantled Monte Vista and harvested the last timber that could be gathered around the site, either cutting it into splitstuff or hauling the logs to the millpond at the Loma Prieta mill. A small stretch of track at Spring Creek was retained into 1902 to harvest timber around the village’s drinking source, which the company had previously feared would contaminate the village’s water if harvested. After the town’s abandonment in 1901, however, this was no longer a concern. Monte Vista and the entire branch beyond Loma Prieta Station was abandoned on June 30, 1902, and the rail was pulled over the ensuing months. The ties and bridges were left behind to rot and collapse into Aptos Creek.

Geo-Coordinates & Access Rights:
First location: 37.03128, -121.8823
Second location: 37.04681, -121.86539

Both locations of Monte Vista can be accessed via the Aptos Creek Trail in The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park, though neither is obvious to the casual observer. Most of this trail either is or parallels the former Loma Prieta Branch railroad route. To reach the first location, follow the Aptos Creek Trail to the sign noting the epicenter of the Loma Prieta Earthquake and then continue for until the trail takes a decisive turn northward. Where the trail turns is the site of the first Monte Vista, which once spanned both sides of the creek below. There is almost no evidence of this early site and no signage.

To reach the second site, continue following the trail until you reach the Big Slide, which occurred during the 1982 winter storm and washed out much of the former right-of-way. Unfortunately, this slide became worse in 2017 and washed out a log bridge which had previously allowed people to easily cross it. The trail beyond is officially out of commission so continue at your own risk. Crossing the slide is not an easy task due to the steep climbs on both sides. When you reach the other side, find the trail and continue along it until you reach Five Finger Falls. The second Monte Vista is actually behind you on either side of the creek. Some old pilings and felled timber may be seen depending on the conditions, but otherwise the site is unremarkable. There was once signage here, but it is likely now gone due to years of neglect caused by the slide destroying the trail and the collapsed bridge making access difficult.

Citations & Credits:

• Articles from the Inyo Independent, Santa Cruz Sentinel, Santa Cruz Surf, and Santa Cruz Evening News, 1884–1901.
• Hamman, Rick. California Central Coast Railways. Second edition. Santa Cruz, CA: Otter B Books, 2007.
• Powell, Ronald G. The Reign of the Lumber Barons: Part Two of the History of Rancho Soquel Augmentation. Santa Cruz, CA: Zayante Publishing, 2021. [Amazon Associates link]
• Southern Pacific Railroad Agency Books and Employee Timetables, 1887–1902.
• Tenth Annual report of the Board of Railroad Commissioners of the State of California for the Year Ending December 31, 1889. Sacramento: State Office, 1890.

Stations: Watsonville Junction

Along the northern edge of Rancho Bolsa de San Cayetano, the gently meandering Pajaro River flows ever closer to the sea, leaving on both sides a vast, silted floodplain that provided the foundations for the twin towns of Pajaro and Watsonville, the former located to the south of the river in Monterey County, the latter to the north in Santa Cruz County. The river was named after a bird, perhaps an eagle, killed by Awaswas-speaking Native Americans and stuffed with straw, later to be found by soldiers of Gaspar de Portolá’s expedition on October 8, 1769. Bolsa de San Cayetano, in contrast, was not established until 1824, when it was given by the Mexican government to Ignacio Vicente Ferrer Vallejo, father of the famous Californio patriot Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo. Upon Ignacio’s death in 1831, the rancho passed to his eldest son, José de Jesús Vallejo, but José expressed little interest in the ranch after 1842. At least one child of Ignacio remained on the property at the time of the United States’ annexation of California in 1848.

Lucy Bell Rich holding Elwood Rich at Watsonville Junction, 1913. Photo by Edith Rich. [Courtesy Carol Bethany – colorized using MyHeritage]

Pajaro as a settlement grew within the rancho in fits and starts. In the first twenty years after statehood, it was little more than the junction of the roads to Santa Cruz, San Juan, and Monterey, with the only notable commercial building being a boarding house. Other commercial structures may have arisen on private properties, yet no settlement arose during this time—all notable commercial business occurred in nearby Watsonville, which began development from 1852. The Pajaro Valley at the time was used primarily for cattle grazing, tanning, making tallow, and growing grain crops, especially wheat and oats. In 1851, J. Bryant Hill became the first settler to attempt to run a commercial farm. Hundreds of settlers followed him, squatting on rancho land that was poorly policed by its owners. Decades of lawsuits followed, but the ranch owners lost in the end. Throughout this time, farmers in north Monterey County drew closer to their brethren in Santa Cruz County, leading to the creation of a shared Pajaro Valley School District in 1853, as well as other joint ventures.

The arrival of the Southern Pacific Railroad in 1871 briefly destabilized this relationship. Southern Pacific had expressed interest in running its new coastal route directly through Watsonville, but residents of the town failed to provide enough fiscal inducements to Southern Pacific to cause them to deviate from their intended route. As a result, the line ran south of the Pajaro River, stopping just before the main road to Monterey and Salinas opposite the narrow bridge over the river to Watsonville. Through traffic to Pajaro Station began on November 27, 1871, and the location remained the end-of-track for the branch for the next year until it was extended to Salinas. Despite consternation among the Watsonville populace, the community quickly embraced the nearby railroad and began shipping from the station.

The Watsonville Junction passenger depot beside the Wells Fargo warehouse, circa 1900. [Courtesy Pajaro Valley Historical Association – colorized using MyHeritage]

Pajaro grew gradually over its first decade. For the first five years, the stagecoach to Santa Cruz chose Pajaro as its southern terminus. It is likely that a turntable was installed at the station to turn locomotives back toward San José, and a few freight spurs may have been added early to cater to local lumber and agricultural firms. Other businesses, especially small hotels, boarding houses, and warehouses, likely arose around the freight yard as Southern Pacific began expanding its facilities. Nevertheless, the community remained small and focused entirely on the railroad. This did not change when the narrow-gauge Santa Cruz Railroad reached Pajaro in May 1876. The tracks shared yard space with Southern Pacific but the rails did not interact, so likely ran adjacent to each other to allow transloading, perhaps with platforms installed between them. Though there is no evidence of the Santa Cruz Railroad having a turntable in the yard, it did have a turntable in Santa Cruz, which would not be required unless another turntable was at the other end of the line. Stage service was replaced with rail service to Santa Cruz, but the facilities likely remained to house visitors in Pajaro. In fact, the arrival of the Santa Cruz Railroad probably had little impact on Pajaro and may have even diverted some traffic away from the yard to Watsonville.

Watsonville Junction passenger and freight depots, April 28, 1940. Photo by W. C. Whittaker. [Courtesy Jim Vail – colorized using MyHeritage]

From the very beginning, daily passenger trains ran from Pajaro to San Francisco over the Southern Pacific line. These also exported increasing numbers of agricultural products, lumber, beer, refined sugar from sugar beets, and lumber, while importing mercantile goods, foodstuffs, mail, and imports from the East Coast and elsewhere. To support the rise in traffic, the railroad built its first local passenger depot, a 27-foot by 81-foot single-story wood frame structure. Across the yard, a 200-foot by 40-foot warehouse was erected to store grain while it awaited transport. Other facilities included a stockyard for holding excess rolling stock and a freight office.

The Watsonville Junction freight yard, circa 1920. [Courtesy Pajaro Valley Historical Association – colorized using MyHeritage]

Competition with the South Pacific Coast Railroad, which completed its route through the Santa Cruz Mountains in May 1880, substantially decreased revenue along the Santa Cruz Railroad, leading to its bankruptcy in 1881. Southern Pacific, seeing the potential of the failed venture, purchased the narrow-gauge railroad and upgraded its track to standard-gauge in 1883. At Pajaro, this meant that the tracks to Santa Cruz were fully integrated with the existing tracks in the yard, and the narrow-gauge turntable was removed and likely replaced with a standard-gauge turntable, unless one had already been installed by the Southern Pacific Railroad earlier. With this conversion complete, Pajaro became the junction point of Southern Pacific’s Pajaro & Santa Cruz Railroad, later the Santa Cruz Branch, and the route to Soledad that would eventually become the Coast Division mainline.

Sanborn Fire Insurance map of the Pajaro Station yard, 1888. [Courtesy Library of Congress]

The completion of the Loma Prieta Railroad in the hills above Aptos in 1884 led to the next major expansion of the Pajaro Station yard: the addition of a 2,000,000 board feet capacity yard to store the lumber harvested by the Loma Prieta Lumber Company. This sprawling lumber yard sat just beside the tracks to Santa Cruz in the center of the Pajaro freight yard. The company’s planing mill was situated on the southeast side of the yard, while the railroad’s roundhouse sat to the east of the lumber stacks. At this time, the roundhouse was still very small—only capable of holding two switch engines. The passenger depot and grain warehouse had also been joined by a 32-foot by 179-foot wood frame freight depot and a second grain and potato warehouse, both grain warehouses being leased to somebody named Jackson. These structures were arranged along Railroad Avenue on the north side of the tracks. Three parallel tracks ran along this section, although it is unclear where they merged east of the station. By 1892, one of the grain warehouses was leased to Besse & Sill but grain and lumber remained the primary products shipped out of the station.

The Watsonville Junction roundhouse, circa 1965. [Courtesy Derek Whaley – colorized using MyHeritage]

The turn of the century saw more substantial improvements made at Pajaro. Trackage in the area increased substantially in the yard, including a new spur to the Unglish Brothers fruit drier on Railroad Avenue, two additional tracks across from the depots and warehouses, and the removal of the Loma Prieta Lumber Company’s yard. Meanwhile, both grain warehouses were leased by H. E. West. In 1902, express parcel service came to the station. Total trackage at Pajaro was first recorded in 1905 as 16,743 feet, which also reflected the addition of the wye that year. This wye meant that trains from Santa Cruz could now go directly to the south without using the turntable or exchanging cars. The next year, the total trackage was increased to 19,375 feet. The April 18, 1906, earthquake, however, caused significant damage to the roundhouse when the yard’s water tower collapsed atop it. The yard shut down for two days while crews cleared the tracks of debris. Over the next year, a new roundhouse and water tower were built, as well as a new freight depot, which was moved to the site of the Unglish Brothers’ drier. A new track was installed to access this depot, running along the south side of Railroad Avenue. At the same time, the passenger depot was moved across the yard to the inside curve of the southern leg of the wye.

A Southern Pacific locomotive beside the water tower at Watsonville Junction, circa 1950. [Courtesy Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History – colorized using MyHeritage]

Although the narrow-gauge route through the Santa Cruz Mountains was the favored method of bringing tourists to Santa Cruz, not everyone went that way, especially travelers who also planned to stop at the Del Monte Hotel in Monterey. Thus, Pajaro was a major transfer point. Yet the name led to endless confusion among those not familiar with the Spanish pronunciation of Pajaro—Pa-ha-row—especially East Coasters. As a result, on July 22, 1913, Southern Pacific rechristened the station Watsonville Junction. Though locals may have been indifferent or a little irritated about the change, those in Watsonville and elsewhere in Santa Cruz County were jubilant since it meant customers would know where to switch trains. Many thought the entire town would also be renamed, but Pajaro retained its former town name even as the station became more closely linked with the city across the river.

Inside the Watsonville Junction roundhouse, circa 1930. [Courtesy Pajaro Valley Historical Association – colorized using My Heritage]

As the decades progressed, the yard at Watsonville Junction continued to evolve. In 1913, along with the name change, a 20-foot by 37-foot two-story wood frame yardmaster’s office was built on the south side of the yard, where it could oversee the operations there. By 1917, the yard had achieved its maximum extent. To the east, a stockyard of at least six tracks led into the main yard. To the south, two tracks broke off from the yard and split into four before merging into a single track as it enters Elkhorn Slough. To the north, six sidings merged into one just before crossing Salinas Road (G12) on the way to Watsonville. And to the west, six tracks broke off on the south side only to quickly combine back together, with two tracks crossing Salinas Road and merging soon afterwards to form the third corner of the wye. Within the wye itself, a second tighter wye track wrapped around an enlarged turntable and eleven-stall roundhouse and connected with a leg of a southbound track. Some of the structures at the yard at this time included a railroad stock warehouse and oiling station situated beside a maintenance spur on the northern side of the yard to the east of the roundhouse. Meanwhile, the depot itself was situated on the southern side of the wye, where a small parking lot provided easy access to cars and buses.

Groundbreaking for the new Watsonville Junction depot, 1947. [Courtesy Watsonville Public Library – colorized using MyHeritage]

The 1920s and 1930s saw a realignment of features at Watsonville Junction. In 1927, a train order registry was located there, forcing all trains to stop and register at the station before moving on. At the eastern end of the yard, a new stockyard was built beside the old freight and grain warehouses, which totaled seven in 1931. These mostly catered to specific freight patrons since five spurs terminated beside the warehouses. It was also in this time that the Salinas Road industrial lead first opened with its first two customers. Despite the Great Depression, Watsonville Junction was very active in these years—the stockyard was never empty of cars waiting to join passing trains.

For a moment in the 1946, a station under the name Pajaro appeared once again, this time 1.8 miles to the east of Watsonville Junction at the end of Hayes Road. This location marked the easternmost extent of the freight yard, where the tracks combined into the double-track except for a single spur that terminated directly west of Hayes Road. There is a sprawling farm just to the south of the tracks that may correspond to an agricultural firm that used the station in 1946, but none of the available Southern Pacific records note a specific freight customer here. What is more likely is that the station was set up as a centralized traffic control (CTC) waypoint, much like Corporal near Sargent, but was merged into Watsonville Junction because it was already within the yard limits. Today, the CTC kiosk bisects the disused spur that runs along the north side of the mainline, but the station name Pajaro vanished in the next employee timetable.

The new Watsonville Junction passenger depot, circa 1970. Photo by Margaret Koch. [Courtesy Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History – colorized using MyHeritage]

On October 31, 1949, a new passenger depot opened beside the old depot. This was a 28-foot by 128-foot frame stucco building with a Carmel stone veneer, a new and unique design reflecting post-war architectural aesthetics. The previous structure was decommissioned the same day but repurposed as the yard office on August 26, 1952, with alteration to the structure made in 1953 and 1967. It seems to have been demolished in late 1978 after the new depot was expanded to add a freight agency and yard office. On June 30, 1966, a new yardmaster’s office building, a 24-foot by 24-foot prefabricated metal square, was erected. This seems to have coincided with the demolition of the water tower, roundhouse, and turntable, which had been deemed unnecessary following the conversion of all locomotives from steam to diesel power in the preceding decade. Passenger service had been on a steady decline since 1938 when all regular service along the Santa Cruz Branch ceased. The last periodic service to run to Watsonville Junction ended entirely on April 30, 1971, when Amtrak took over passenger services.

Southern Pacific locomotive no. 5623 at Watsonville Junction, 1958. [Courtesy Derek Whaley – colorized using MyHeritage]

Although all passenger service had ceased, freight service continues through Watsonville Junction and the location remains an active switch for the Santa Cruz Branch Rail Line, albeit only for freight services at this time. Several freight customers in Pajaro and Watsonville use private spurs for loading cars and the Union Pacific Railroad uses yard trackage to assemble trains of perishable and non-perishable goods for transport out. The second passenger depot remained in place as an office for Southern Pacific Transportation Company staff until the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, when it was severely damaged. Though some restoration work was attempted, the building was eventually condemned and demolished on January 18, 2012. At the time, the plan was to complete environmental planning for the extension of the Bay Area transportation rail system and then erect a third depot, but this has not happened as of January 2025. A few passenger trains do pass through Watsonville Junction daily but these do not stop there. Presently, Union Pacific uses a temporary, modular building for its local offices.

Google aerial photograph of the Watsonville Junction yard, 2024.

Geo-Coordinates & Access Rights:
36.894091, -121.745736
100.4 miles from San Francisco
20.3 miles from Santa Cruz

Watsonville Junction remains an active rail yard for the Union Pacific Railroad. Several passenger trains still pass through the yard each week, though none presently stop there. Freight trains pass through regular while hoppers from the Graniterock quarry at Logan are often assembled in the yard, awaiting transport to southern destinations. Foundations remain for about half a dozen buildings, but almost none of the original structures remain on site. An abandoned freight platform still sits beside Salinas Road with a spur track terminating at it. All the other trackage is intact and moderately in use, including a still significant wye that, on its western side, crosses over the site of the former turntable. Two industrial leads run alongside SunRidge Farms / Falcon Trading Company and behind a number of food distributors. In the middle of the wye, four sidings eventually merge together to the east to join the mainline. Another spur runs alongside Railroad Avenue beside an 8-lane assembly area that is located further to the east, beside the two mainline tracks. Remnants of other sidings and spurs remain, some disused, others entirely disconnected, and long-term evidence of the railroad throughout the area is not difficult to discern in aerial photographs or on the ground.

Citations & Credits:

• Henry E. Bender Jr., “SP San Jose to Watsonville Junction.” December 2017.
• Margaret Clovis. Images of America: Monterey County’s North Coast and Coastal Valleys. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2006.
• Erwin G. Gudde. California Place Names: The Origin and Etymology of Current Geographical Names. Fourth edition. Berkeley, CA: UC Press, 1998.
• Edward S. Harrison. History of Santa Cruz County, California. San Francisco: Pacific Press Publishing Co., 1892.
• Mildred Brooke Hoover, Hero Eugene Rensch, and Ethel Grace Rensch. Historic Spots in California. Third edition. Revised by William N. Abeloe. Palo Alto, CA: Stanford University Press, 1966.
• Betty Lewis, various articles for the Register-Pajaronian.
• Southern Pacific Railroad. Various employee timetables and station books. 1883–1996.
• S. H. Willey. Santa Cruz County, California: Illustrations Descriptive of its Scenery… San Francisco: Wallace W. Elliott & Co., 1879.