The Sankey Solution, Part 1- Stripping Striplin

The elimination of the Sacramento Northern, SN, mainline north of East Nicolaus on October 15, 1958 also included the conversion of the SN-Western Pacific, WP, crossing at Sankey to an interchange to provide a path for SN freights between Sacramento and Marysville and the Reed-Pearson Branch. This update will address before-and-after that conversion, as well as the next reduction of the line north of Sankey in 1965. This southeast view from 2019 at Sankey Rd. shows where the passenger station had been located pre-1941.

L316-05-Stuart Swiedler Photo, (Image 1 of 24)

The negative of this image was noted to have been developed on Nov. 4, 1940, so it is likely that this southeast view of the station at Sankey Rd. was taken close to the end of the passenger era on the North End on Oct. 31, 1940. The station shelter appears to have been constructed of wood, and was different in style than the other smaller A. D. Schindler’s designs of this size that had brick facing on their base. See Garth Groff’s excellent review of Schindler stations to compare.

L316-10-Howard T. Wolfe Photo Sankey, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 230304sn, (Image 2 of 24)

The north-oriented aerial view on the left from 2024 shows the outline of the southern end of Sutter County, and the section boxed in turquoise was the location of Sankey, that portion shown in detail on the right. The scarred ground at the SN-WP crossing has its origins in its conversion to an interchange, activated on October 15, 1958.

L316-15-Courtesy Google Maps, (Image 3 of 24)

Since its inception early in the 20th century, the SN-WP crossing did not involve an interchange and had no tower to oversee train crossings. This image provides a northwest view ca. 1940 of the crossing. Those distinctive power-telephone poles shown at East Nicolaus and points further north in Sutter County were also found here.

L316-20-Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 132030sn, (Image 4 of 24)

Shown here is a southeast view of SN 101 and two trailers heading north ca. 1940. Together with the previous northwest view, this confirms that there were no interchange tracks here. Note the railroad worker in the distance next to the booth. From this close range, it is difficult to know how train movements at the crossing were managed.

L316-25-Moreau Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 163720sn, (Image 5 of 24)

The central panel applies to the crossing in 1939 and 1951. In 1939, left, the SN had many more trains passing through the crossing, primarily passenger trains, and the signals were further away than in 1951, right, when the SN had at most a single daily freight passing through. The description of the signals in 1951 match with images that follow from Jan 29, 1950.

L316-30-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 13474, (Image 6 of 24)

From Jan. 29, 1950, this northwest view during a Budd RDC demonstrator car excursion after the third rail was gone, shows the signals are clearly closer to the crossing, and the action to pass a stop is greeted with a derail. Now the railroad employee is at the crossing.

L316-35-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 101157sn, (Image 7 of 24)

A closer view of the track from the previous Jan. 29, 1950 northwest view at the SN-WP crossing.

L316-40-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 101157sn, (Image 8 of 24)

Someone did manage to photograph the Budd RDC demonstrator car at the crossing on the Jan. 29, 1950 excursion, again, a northwest view.

L316-45-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 76008sn, (Image 9 of 24)

The WP Railroad Circular No. 167-E ca. 1957 lists Valley Warehouse Co. as a SN customer with a siding with a 6-car freight car capacity. The company probably resided in the large warehouse south of the station building, but north of the crossing, seen in many of the previous images. Recall they also had a storage facility at East Nicolaus as well.

L316-50-Courtesy Bruce Eldridge, (Image 10 of 24)

The conversion of the simple crossing to a merged interchange in 1958 to allow SN trains to access the WP mainline north to Marysville is confirmed by these before-and-after, north-oriented aerials from 1952, left, versus 1958, right, the latter from Aug. 22, two months before the interchange was being used. Ref: Courtesy of UC Santa Barbara Library Geospatial Collection, pai-abc_2k-136, l: Aerial Collection, Archives and Special Collections, UC Davis Library, 039 G4363 S9A4 1958 S8, r

L316-55-Multiple Attributes, (Image 11 of 24)

Finding a ground view of the new interchange was a challenge, but this south view during an inspection trip headed by Harold Meeker in Mar. 1973 provides the desired southwest view.

L316-60-Kenneth J. Meeker Photo, Courtesy Feather River Rail Society, (Image 12 of 24)

Next to account for what was lost when the SN route was cut back from East Nicolaus to Catlett in 1965. This documents shown includes everything north of Sankey to East Nicolaus, i.e., Sutter County, but for this date, the 1912 schedule shows only one stop  to be eliminated, Striplin, approximately 3 miles south of East Nicolaus.

L316-65-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 13474 FINAL, (Image 13 of 24)

These maps from 2024 and 1935, left to right, respectively, also serve to cover the remainder of the southern part of Sutter County south of East Nicolaus. The section of interest for this update, between Catlett and East Nicolaus, involved the SN’s third curved section north of Sacramento during the passenger era.

L316-70-Courtesy Google Maps, l, David Rumsey Map Collection, David Rumsey Map Center, Stanford Libraries, 6345073, r FINAL, (Image 14 of 24)

Ted Benson visited East Nicolaus six years after the purge and found only a ghost of a substation and that double line of Sutter County power poles, south view, Oct. 19, 1971. The image on the right from Mar. 1961 is included for comparison, when the track and station were intact. Note the mile 119 sign on the pole on the right.

L316-75-Ted Benson Photo, Courtesy Ted Benson, l, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 182171sn, r, (Image 15 of 24)

Next, two aerials from June 16, 1959, a north view on the left, a south view on the right, the product of another reconnaissance by the Highway Department for their Highway 70 planning. Next a much closer look at the north view on the left.

L316-80-Copyright California Department of Transportation, 6956-8, r, 6956-6, l, (Image 16 of 24)

Three panels here of the straight-away section of the previous aerial on the left from June 16, 1959. The furthest away section is on the left, and the panel on the right from the north end of the curve. The tree array in the left panel points to the abandoned substation at East Nicolaus for reference. The blue arrow points to the crossing of Striplin Rd. with the right-of-way, the yellow arrow to a pole that will be of consequence shortly. The right panel shows a short trestle for which no ground image has been identified.

L316-85-Copyright California Department of Transportation, 6956-6, (Image 17 of 24)

Cal-Nevada President Grahame Hardy and fellow excursionists take a break at Striplin in this north view with SN 1009 in the lead on May 8, 1938. The track diagrams in the initial update in this series indicated that the siding was to the west, so this is a north view. The pole marked in the last center panel is seen here to the west of the track, and Striplin Rd. can be appreciated to the right or east of the train.

L316-90-Silleman Bros. Photo, Holmes Bros. Col, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archives, 138458sn, (Image 18 of 24)

The last two figures provide evidence that the Striplin passenger shelter was just north of Striplin Rd. The pattern of the trees In L316-85 even matches what is seen in this 2024 north-oriented vertical view to provide more confirmation of the shelter’s location.

L316-95-Courtesy Google Maps, (Image 19 of 24)

A third aerial from June 16, 1959, left, is a northwest view that features the grade crossing over what in 2024 is the East Striplin Frontage Rd. for Highway 70, and a culverted creek or waterway running under the right-of-way, detail on the right.

L316-100-Copyright California Department of Transportation, 6956-7, (Image 20 of 24)

Ted Benson’s southeast view just north of the Catlett stop on Dec. 5, 1970 shows the terminus formed from the abandonment completed in 1965.

L316-105-Ted Benson Photo, Courtesy Ted Benson, (Image 21 of 24)

At that point in time, the Catlett sign remained upright, and the track was clear of any overgrowth.

L316-110-Ted Benson photo, Courtesy Ted Benson, (Image 22 of 24)

The composite map up to 1965 has the abandonment that has been described here of East Nicolaus and Striplin, but also adds the two waves of abandonment that occurred on the Colusa Branch in 1960 and 1964, respectively, to be covered elsewhere.

L316-115-Wayne Hom Drawing, Courtesy John Harder, l, and Moreau Coll., Courtesy BAERA, WRM Archives, r, (Image 23 of 24)

Ted Benson returned to the area on Oct. 19, 1971 and documented the last bit of paint clinging to the mile 119 sign at East Nicolaus in the south view on the left. On the right, this southeast view provides visual evidence of the continuing abandonment of the line north of Sankey that occurred earlier that year, the topic of the update to follow.

L316-120-Ted Benson Photo, Courtesy Ted Benson, (Image 24 of 24)