The Icing Platform, Branching Spurs, and Other Yard Secrets

Pacific Fruit Express refrigerated boxcars, “PFE Reefers”, line up along the icing platform in this undated northwest view in the Sacramento Northern, SN, Yuba City freight yard. This update will explore the large yard as well as some of the businesses lined up along the spur tracks, and, of course, follow up on the exact location of the icing platform.

L308-05-Moreau Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 162294sn, (Image 1 of 32)

After one minor change to the yard track configuration, the detailed track layout dating back to Nov. 17, 1928 would serve the SN through the electric era.  The two spur tracks in place served businesses lining the north side of Bridge St., and provided opportunities on the north side of the tracks. The proposed spur track would be built at a date not yet determined, and the proposed driveway would eventually become Jones St. The long siding along Reeves Ave., orange arrow, is the next topic of discussion.

L308-10-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 22563, (Image 2 of 32)

The long siding, red arrow, left, would serve as a team track, confirmed by the Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957, right. The entrance to the west allowed freights to back cars in from that end out of harms way of north-bound traffic. Note the addition of one very short siding, blue arrow, absent in the previous diagram from 1928.

L308-15-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 97638, l, Courtesy Bruce Eldridge, r, (Image 3 of 32)

The ground-based survey of the spur and siding tracks in the yard begins with this northwest view of Birney 68 about to leave the yard on the final day of streetcar service in Marysville-Yuba City on Feb. 15, 1942. Unlike most yard-centric views of the area, this image emphasizes that the most southerly placed spurs in the yard supplied the rear of buildings accessible to the public from the north side of Bridge St.

L308-17-Louis Bradas, Jr. Photo, Western Railway Museum Archives, 69138sn, (Image 4 of 32)

Entering the yard past the depot and freight platform, and then turning back to the east, several tracks come into view with SN 146 from Sept. 20, 1959. The first two spurs, marked in red, supplied businesses on Bridge St. and the south side of Jones St. The track marked 3 supplied the short siding identified in the previous diagram, and the long siding along the icing platform.

L308-20-Holmes Bros. Photo, Jim Holmes Coll., Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 159550sn, (Image 5 of 32)

Now turning toward the west on Mar. 26, 1960, the three tracks viewed in the last image can be seen from left to right, starting at the Richfield facility, with the SN General Electric, GE, diesel 44-ton switcher on track no. 1. The icing platform can be appreciated in the distance. Finally note the white shed just to the left of the tanker car.

L308-25-Don Meehan Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 6 of 32)

Back to Aug. 18, 1950, this detail similar to the previous west view clearly shows the icing platform. The earliest photo showing the structure was from 1947, images from the 1942 final day of streetcar service did not show it. Note the extra switch track absent in the previous image, and the absence of the white building. Read on …

L308-30-Jim Lee Photo, Milton Ziehm Coll., Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, Caterpillar Tractor Co. Neg. 74369, 29469sn, Detail, (Image 7 of 32)

The icing platform is obscured in this northwest view of SN 141, SN 145 and a slice of electric motor SN 410 taken on Apr. 18, 1947, but it shows the extra switch track with a short track and boxcar leading to an open door of a larger shed that was present in the last two images. This documents that the small siding added sometime after 1928 was removed sometime between 1950 and 1960.

L308-35-Teen Becksted Photo, Caterpillar Tractor Co. Neg. 55599, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 24663sn, (Image 8 of 32)

Past the west end of the icing platform and the end of the siding alongside it was the switch of the track leading to the buildings on the north side of  Jones St., southeast view, Mar. 26, 1960. For purposes of location, the west end of the icing platform corresponded to the Almond St.-Reeves Ave intersection, the street sign of the former being visible, red arrow.

L308-40-Don Meehan Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 9 of 32)

SN 101 and two trailers cross the Cooper Ave. grade crossing in this ca. 1940 east view. On the right border is a partial view of a track originating west of the grade crossing and crossing it to the south or right of the mainline. The function of that track when this image was taken is not known, but it would later serve a cold storage facility added just before the end of the electric era. More details on that subject later.

L308-45-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 125404sn, (Image 10 of 32)

With the track configuration outlined, the challenging part is figuring out what businesses these spurs were serving. On one level there are changes of businesses in specific structures, and, as these three aerials reveal, construction of new facilities and removal of others.

L308-50-Courtesy of UC Santa Barbara Library Geospatial Collection, c-7490_455, l, cas-1957, c, cas-2579_1-12, r, (Image 11 of 32)

The Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957 provides many of the businesses lining Bridge St., boxed in orange, and at the Cooper Ave. border, green boxes, served by the yard spurs that are relatively straightforward to identify. The same cannot be said for those along Jones St., black boxes, where many cannot be identified accurately with addresses that do not correspond to those found in 2024.

L308-55-Courtesy Bruce Eldridge, (Image 12 of 32)

Although many images of trains in the main yard were taken during the electric era, very few followed actual switching or movements, such as in this southeast view of SN 420 across from the Bridge St. Elementary School in Aug. 1950. In addition, images of freights within the spurs at their destinations documenting what they delivered or picked up are exceedingly rare.

L308-60-Robert L. Stein Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives 47416sn, (Image 13 of 32)

Starting with the original southerly two spur tracks, SN 430 and SN 441 sit beside Richfield Gas and Electric Co. or Oil Corp., a longtime customer at the eastern edge of the yard that would merge with Atlantic Refining Co. in 1966. Southwest view, Aug. 6, 1952. The white tank supported on a stand corresponds to the “proposed location oil tank” labeled in the track diagram in L308-15, a fixture in many of the images that follow.

L308-65-KAR Photo, Moreau Coll., Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 14 of 32)

Moving along the spurs westward, images such as this southwest view featuring British Columbia Electric Railway, BCER, 1225, and SN 653 on the excursion date with the former, June 15, 1958, provide some clues as to the contents of materials being delivered or received by the freights, but only from a distance.

L308-70-Ernest Haase Photo, Moreau Coll., Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 15 of 32)

Along with lots of wooden barrels, SN 430, SN 440 and a SN 140s series diesel, this northeast image from Jan. 29, 1950 shows that the southern-most of the two spurs was relatively short, and the the northern-most spur would produce an offshoot just beyond where the other spur ended.

L308-75-Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 167403sn, (Image 16 of 32)

SN 410 sits alongside the Ottney warehouse ca. 1950, this building housing many different companies in the first half of the 20th century. No information or evidence that Ottney was a SN customer was found, but see the next photo. This east view also shows Sutter Orchard Supply Co. to the east, and Richfield on its eastern flank.

L308-80-Walt Vielbaum Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 132952sn, (Image 17 of 32)

The Ottney packing house was still there in Apr. 1951. A boxcar is lined up with one of the packing house freight platforms, revealing that they were a SN customer. SN 420 adds to the scene in this northeast view.

L308-85-Martin Hansen Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 161784sn, (Image 18 of 32)

This east view brings the tour of the spur tracks to the west end, the buildings that border Bridge St. in view. This was the only image recovered of this spot from the May 18, 1957 excursion with Birney 62. The evidence for this location and the companies along this section will be presented shortly.

L308-90-McDonald Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 217822sn, (Image 19 of 32)

Across on the northern-placed spur track, Muni 178 sits at the west end of the spur during the May 3, 1959 excursion along a structure whose front entrance opened to Jones St. The trees at the end of this southwest view are an important marker for this location. The specific business occupying this structure at this time was not determined, but the image was labeled “Packing House Spur.”

L308-95-McDonald Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 217838sn, (Image 20 of 32)

Next, an attempt to summarize the identify of building occupants in the images just shown using Sanborn Maps, telephone directories, BAERA images and maps, and the Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957. Ref: Sanborn Map Company, Courtesy Sutter County Historical Society, bottom; Courtesy of UC Santa Barbara Library Geospatial Collection, cas-1957, top

L308-100-Multiple Attributions, (Image 21 of 32)

This north-facing aerial from 1953 pinpoints the position of streetcars in the previous images toward the west end of the Bridge St. spurs. The red arrow corresponds to the position of Birney 62 in L308-90, the green arrow that of Muni 178 in L308-95. The orange lines indicate the row of trees found in the backdrops of southwest-directed images. The two businesses on Cooper Ave. were listed as SN customers the Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957. The turquoise arrow marks the icing platform, the yellow arrow to the next image, and a discussion of the structure marked by the blue line to follow.

L308-105-Eastman and Company Photo, B-8037, Courtesy Archives and Special Collections UC Davis Library, (Image 22 of 32)

The single spur track serving buildings on the north side of Jones St. as well as those to the north is shown in this May 18, 1957 southwest view of Birney 62, corresponding to the position of the yellow arrow in the last aerial image. The image was labelled as the “Yuba Packing. Co. Spur”, that name not listed as a SN customer in the Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957. More research needed here.

L308-110-McDonald Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 217827sn, (Image 23 of 32)

This east view of SN 1005 on excursion of  June 17, 1962 includes the building sign “Yuba City Refrigerating Co.” somewhat elevated above the building. The Western Pacific Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957 lists this company as an SN customer, and the directories ca. 1960 list the business at no. 700 Jones St. Note on the left edge a walkway or bridge coming off the building over the spur track. The location of the train in this picture and the purported address do not coincide  as displayed next.

L308-115-McDonald Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 217848sn, (Image 24 of 32)

This west view of SN 653 and SN 146 should look very familiar at this point. The coloration of SN 146 and the presence of the small white shed that displaced the small spur suggests a date of around 1960. Note that the icing platform is still present. From this angle, the red arrow points to the sign spelling out “Yuba City Refrigerating Co.” Note the shape of the building in front of or to the northeast of the sign, between the sign and the icing platform.

L308-120-Moreau Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 215215sn, (Image 25 of 32)

This west view of Muni 178 during the May 21, 1959 excursion also shows the sign just to the left of the icing platform. This image indicates the sign is directed more to the northwest side of the building.

L308-125-Ted Campbell Photo, Moreau Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 26 of 32)

Back to the north-facing aerial from 1953, the building with the blue lines is the one in front of the sign seen in the previous image identifying the occupants. The SN had the single spur on the northwest side of the building, green arrow, which means the picture had to be shot toward the northeast, yellow arrow. The walkway or bridge coming off the building over the spur track visible in L308-115 is marked by the orange arrow, supporting the the direction taken by the photographer. The yellow box marks no. 700 Jones St. as it corresponds to it in 2024.

L308-130-Eastman and Company Photo, B-8037, Courtesy Archives and Special Collections UC Davis Library, (Image 27 of 32)

These vertical aerial views provide more information on the timing of the addition of the building occupied by the refrigeration company. The orange arrow marks the walk way or protrusion off the structure identified earlier. One additional note is that the space at no. 700 Jones St. in 2024 was still empty in 1969, yellow square. The 1969 aerial also shows a building marked by the turquoise arrow that was absent in 1957.

L308-135-Courtesy of UC Santa Barbara Library Geospatial Collection, c-7490_455, l, cas-1957, c, cas-2579_1-12, r, (Image 28 of 32)

This detail from a northwest aerial of the freight yard from Feb. 8, 1972 provides the best view of the overhanging Yuba City Refrigerating Co. sign, orange arrow. In addition, it shows the new building pointed out in the previous aerial view from 1969, turquoise arrow, is being supplied by a siding coming off west of Cooper Ave., yellow arrow. This Wass noted previously in L308-45. As an aside, the red arrow points out an added short spur just to the northwest of where the short spur had been to the larger shed. This spur appears more like a team track.

L308-140-Copyright California Department of Transporation, 17568-2, (Image 29 of 32)

The building in question can be seen alongside the last two boxcars of this line up of maintenance cars featuring MW 81. The southwest view is dated Mar. 26, 1960, meaning this building was present during the electric era. It served as a refrigerated storage building, same as it does in 2024 with an address at 709 Cooper Ave.

L308-145-Don Meehan Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 30 of 32)

That completes a series of updates that provide details about the SN spurs and sidings in Yuba City east of Cooper Ave. Still, the location of every spur is still incomplete. The left image with Birney 62 from the May 18, 1957 excursion has two spur tracks that curve. It was labeled as possibly from CalPak, but the wooden crate is labeled with Del Monte’s serious competitor in the baby food business, Gerber. The image on the right with SN 403 is a complete mystery as to location as well.

L308-150-Ken Lass Collection, 161486sn, l, Moreau Collection, r, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, (Image 31 of 32)

This presentation ends with a second northwest aerial of the freight yard from Feb. 8, 1972. Appreciation to Garth Groff for sharing his material on the SN Yuba City freight yard. Next time, beyond Cooper Ave. to the city limit and end of overhead wire.

L308-155-Copyright California Department of Transporation, 17568-3, (Image 32 of 32)