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CORPORATIONS.

Returns have been received by this Commission for the year 1888 from twenty-four corporations doing business in this State. Twenty-three of these corporations were organized under the laws of this State, and one, the Southern Pacific Company, was organized under the laws of the State of Kentucky. Of the whole number reporting, fifteen are broad or standard gauge (four feet eight and one half inches), and nine are narrow gauge (three feet). In this report seven corporations appear that have not hitherto reported to the Commission, notwithstanding the fact that they have been subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission.

The names of the corporations reporting, history, description, and present condition of the same, are as follows:

SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY.

The Southern Pacific Company is organized under the laws of the State of Kentucky. It operates, under lease, railroad lines in California, Nevada, Utah, Oregon, Arizona, New Mexico, and Louisiana, and steamship lines running from New Orleans to New York, Havana, Vera Cruz, Nicaragua,

etc. It also has a proprietary interest in railroad lines located in Texas. These lines include the Southern Pacific transcontinental line known as the "Sunset Route." The lines east of El Paso are known as the Atlantic System, and those west of that place are known as the Pacific System. The railroad lines operated in California, and included in the Pacific. System of the Southern Pacific Company, are the following:

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In connection with the railroad lines in California there are also operated ferry and transfer steamers on the Bay of San Francisco and tributaries; also river steamers on the Sacramento and Feather Rivers.

A summary of the lines operated by the Southern Pacific Company in California, November 15, 1889, is shown below:

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The following is a brief history of each of these lines:

Miles.

756.91

115.44

25.90

390.48

1,283.41

104.00

2,676.14

CENTRAL PACIFIC RAILROAD.

The Central Pacific Railroad Company of California was chartered June 28, 1861, to build a railroad from Sacramento to the State line of Nevada. In 1862, Congress passed an Act to aid in the construction of a Pacific railroad, and authorized the Central Pacific Railroad to construct its road to the westerly line of the State of California, and there meet the Union Pacific Railroad, thus forming a through overland road. Subsequently the limitation to build to the westerly line of the State of California was removed, and the Central Pacific was authorized to build eastward from California to a connection with the Union Pacific Railroad. In 1863 the work of construction was commenced, and the through line was completed in May, 1869-seven years less time than had been allowed by the Acts of Congress. The obstacles encountered in the tunneling of mountains, bridging and filling of ravines, was accomplished at an enormous cost, and when the snow line was reached it became evident that the only means of protecting the road from the heavy snowfalls, and keep it open for traffic, would be the construction of substantial snowsheds and galleries, which were constructed for a distance of nearly forty miles. The road was completed to Newcastle on November 1, 1864; to Auburn, May 14, 1865; to Clipper Gap, June 19, 1865; to Colfax, September 11, 1865; to Dutch Flat, July 5, 1866; to Alta, July 11, 1866; to Cisco, December 3, 1866; to Truckee, April 3, 1868; to Reno, June 19, 1868; to Wadsworth, July 22, 1868; to Browns, August 21, 1868; to Oreana, September 20, 1868; to Winnemucca, October 1, 1868; to Argenta, November 19, 1868; to Elko, January 25, 1869; to Carlin, March 15, 1869; to Terrace, May 7, 1869; to Promontory, May 9, 1869, to a connection with the Union Pacific Railroad, thus completing the first overland railroad. Subsequently the road from Promontory to Ogden was acquired from the Union Pacific Railroad Company.

On June 23, 1870, the Western Pacific Railroad, organized to construct a line from San José to Sacramento and San Francisco, was consolidated with the Central Pacific Railroad of California, forming the Central Pacific Railroad Company. On August 22, 1870, the California and Oregon Railroad, operating a line from Roseville north toward Oregon; the San Francisco, Oakland, and Alameda Railroad, operating ferry steamers on the Bay of San Francisco, and local lines of railroad in Oakland and Alameda, and the San Joaquin Valley Railroad, organized to construct a line through the San Joaquin Valley, were consolidated with the Central Pacific Railroad, under the name of the Central Pacific Railroad Company.

Construction, which had ceased on the Oregon Division at Redding, was resumed in 1884 with the intention of pushing the line to a connection with the Oregon and California Railroad, thus forming a through rail connection between San Francisco, California, and Portland, Oregon. The Siskiyou Mountains required grades of 174.24 feet to the mile, and curvature with a radius of 409.51 feet to reach the summit of the Siskiyou Mountains. The whole road was solidly constructed, all culverts and openings being built of stone, and the river crossings are bridged with iron bridges the Sacramento River being crossed eighteen times-and on October 5, 1887, the line was completed to the State line of California and Oregon. On December 17, 1887, the Oregon and California Railroad completed its road to the State line, making connection with the Central Pacific Railroad, thus uniting California and Oregon.

All the lines of this company are of standard gauge. The mileage, as operated, is as follows:

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To reach San Francisco it is necessary to maintain a fleet of passenger ferry steamers and freight transfer steamers on the Bay of San Francisco, which make connection with all trains at the Oakland terminal depot, and make half-hourly trips during the day for the accommodation of suburban travel. The steamers employed in passenger traffic are the "Alameda," "Amador," "El Capitan," "Oakland," "Piedmont;" and in freight traffic, the "Thoroughfare" and "Transit."

In connection with its railroad lines, there is operated on the Sacramento River a line of steamers plying between San Francisco and Sacramento. Employed in this traffic are the steamers "Apache" and "Modoc " and the barges "Ace of Spades" and "Yolo."

CALIFORNIA PACIFIC RAILROAD.

This road as it now exists was organized December 23, 1869, by consolidation and amalgamation of the then existing California Pacific Railroad Company and California Pacific Railroad Extension Company, which in turn had been consolidated; the former on January 6, 1865, with the San Francisco and Marysville Railroad and the Sacramento and San Francisco Railroad; the latter on April 5, 1869, with the Napa Valley Railroad. This road is wholly located in the State of California, is of standard gauge, and its mileage as follows:

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In connection with its railroad the California Pacific operates a ferry line from Vallejo to Vallejo Junction, connecting there with the Northern Railway for San Francisco and other points on the lines operated by the Southern Pacific Company.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA RAILWAY.

This company was organized September 3, 1888, and acquired by purchase the Northern California Railroad, which was organized September 6, 1884, and had acquired the California Northern Railroad on January 1, 1885. The California Northern Railroad was chartered June 29, 1860, and

in February, 1864, opened its road to Oroville. It went into the hands of a receiver, and was sold at Commissioner's sale January 22, 1881. It was operated under its old corporate title until absorbed by the Northern California Railroad. It is of standard gauge. The present mileage operated is from Marysville to Oroville, 25.90 miles. The company has completed during 1889 the construction of a line from Marysville to Knight's Landing, a distance of 27.70 miles, which, however, is not yet in operation; giving it a total of 53.60 miles, all in the State of California.

NORTHERN RAILWAY.

This road was organized July 19, 1871, and opened its line for traffic from Woodland, the junction point with the California Pacific Railroad, to Williams, July 1, 1876; from Williams to Willows, October 3, 1878; to Orland, July 31, 1882; to Tehama, the junction point with Central Pacific Railroad, September 27, 1882. From West Oakland to Shell Mound the road was opened August 16, 1876; to Martinez, January 9, 1878; to Suisun, December 28, 1879, joining there the California Pacific Railroad, and forming a short line from San Francisco to Sacramento, in connection with the ferry system of the Central Pacific Railroad. At Port Costa extensive wharves were built, and a ferry established to transfer freight and passenger trains across the Straits of Carquinez to Benicia. For that purpose the steamer" Solano" was constructed, which is one of the largest ferry steamers in the world, having a tonnage of three thousand five hundred and fifty tons. In 1888, the increase in traffic between West Oakland and Port Costa necessitated the constructiou of a second track, which was completed and put in operation November 1, 1888.

On May 15, 1888, the Northern Railway was consolidated with the Winters and Ukiah Railway, Woodland, Capay, and Clear Lake Railroad, West Side and Mendocino Railroad, Vaca Valley and Clear Lake Railroad, San Joaquin and Sierra Nevada Railroad (narrow gauge), Sacramento and Placerville Railroad, Shingle Springs and Placerville Railroad, Santa Rosa and Carquinez Railroad, Amador Branch Railroad, and Berkeley Branch Railroad, forming the Northern Railway Company. The lines of this road are wholly located in California, and the mileage at the present time is as follows:

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All of the above are standard gauge, with the exception of the line from Bracks to Valley Springs, which has a gauge of three feet.

SOUTHERN PACIFIC RAILROAD OF CALIFORNIA.

This road was incorporated December 2, 1865, and on October 12, 1870, consolidated with the San Francisco and San José Railroad, the Santa Clara and Pajaro Valley Railroad, and the California Southern Railroad. On August 19, 1873, the Southern Pacific Branch Railroad was consolidated. with this road. On December 18, 1874, the Los Angeles and San Pedro Railroad was consolidated with the Southern Pacific Railroad. On May 14, 1888, the Southern Pacific Railroad, San José and Almaden Railroad, Pajaro and Santa Cruz Railroad, Monterey Railroad, Monterey Extension Railroad, Southern Pacific Branch Railway, San Pablo and Tulare Railroad, San Pablo and Tulare Extension Railroad, San Ramon Valley Railroad, Stockton and Copperopolis Railroad, Stockton and Tulare Railroad, San Joaquin Valley and Yosemite Railroad, Los Angeles and San Diego Railroad, Los Angeles and Independence Railroad, Long Beach, Whittier, and Los Angeles County Railroad, Long Beach Railroad, Southern Pacific Railroad Extension, and Ramona and San Bernardino Railroad, were consolidated under the name of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company.

Under the Acts of Congress of July 27, 1866, and March 3, 1871, this company was aided in the construction of its line by a land grant, covering the road from San José, via Goshen, to the Colorado River.

The Southern Pacific Railroad is divided into two divisions for operating purposes: The Coast Division, from San Francisco to Santa Margarita, with branches to Tres Pinos, Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Almaden; the Southern Division, from Goshen to Yuma, together with the various branches. The Coast Division was completed to Soledad and Tres Pinos August 12, 1873. In 1886, construction was resumed at Soledad, to extend the line down the coast to a connection with the Southern Division, the present terminus being Santa Margarita, to which point the road was completed for operation January 31, 1889.

The Southern Division commences at Goshen, where it forms a junction with the Central Pacific Railroad. Construction on this division was commenced in 1872, reaching Caliente April 26, 1875; from Caliente through the Tehachapi Pass a great many difficulties were encountered, on account of the rugged nature of the country. Seventeen tunnels had to be constructed in a distance of twenty-five miles, and it is here the celebrated loop is located. In the meantime construction was carried on from Los Angeles, south toward the Colorado River, and work was being pushed at the San Fernando tunnel, which was constructed at an enormous cost, being 6,966.5 feet in length, and it was found necessary to timber the whole of it. On September 6, 1876, connection was made at the San Fernando tunnel between the lines constructed from San Francisco south and from Los Angeles north, completing the all rail line between the two points. The construction of the line was rapidly carried on across the Colorado desert, where it passes two hundred and sixty-six feet below the sea level. The Colorado River was reached May 23, 1877, and the road opened for traffic. At the Colorado River connection is made with the Southern Pacific Railroad of Arizona, thus forming the Southern Pacific transcontinental line, popularly known as the "Sunset Route."

In 1882 construction was commenced on a line from Mojave to The Needles, at the Colorado River, and it was opened for traffic on August 9, 1883, making connection at The Needles with the line of the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad Company. On August 20, 1884, an agreement of sale for

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