Where was the Thornhill Station Located?

Historic Photo Archivist Ray Raineri asked, "Where was the SN Thornhill station located?" This southeast view of SN 1005 from Mar. 3, 1941 reveals the size of the shelter and wooden platform, catenary wire pole positions, the presence of block signals, but no clue as to location.

L15-05-Ted Wurm Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 51867sn , (Image 1 of 19)

Starting chronologically, this circa 1913 Eston Cheney southeast image showing the right-of-way and the shelter.

L15-06-Eston Cheney Photo B-1309, Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, WRM Archive, 24134sn, (Image 2 of 19)

A detail of L15-06 shows a closer view of the double-track configuration by the shelter. Southeast view, circa 1913.

L15-07-Eston Cheney Photo B-1309, Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, WRM Archive, 24134sn, (Image 3 of 19)

This southeast view from 1917 just east of the block signals still shows the double track configuration. The date of revision of this two-track alignment is not known. The steps up to a road, as the car suggests, could only be to Moraga Avenue.

L15-10-Cheney Photo A1845, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 52126sn , (Image 4 of 19)

Confirming the presence of Moraga Ave. to the west flank of the shelter is supported by this east view from that road circa 1923 of the shelter and stopped passenger train, the road in its original two-lane configuration.

L15-11-Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 26064sn, (Image 5 of 19)

This detail from L15-11 highlights the entrance to the station from Moraga Avenue, left, and provides evidence consistent with the reported date of ca. 1923, by the San Francisco-Sacramento Railroad lettering on passenger motor SN 1014, right.

L15-12-Sappers Collection, Courtesy BAERA, WRM Archive, 26064sn, (Image 6 of 19)

Now to June 21, 1940 in this south view with a SN 1014-led train. The image highlights the placement of the shelter and block signals at the end of a gentle curve of track.

L15-15-Ted Wurm Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 54018sn , (Image 7 of 19)

Houses on the east side of Estates Drive above the right-of-way are an important marker. This southwest view from Sep. 23, 1953 shows the intersection of Moraga Avenue and Estates Drive. For future reference, to the right or north, note the square house at 5644 Estates Drive with the easterly protruding sleeping porch.

L15-20-Public Works Photo, Oakland Cultural Heritage Survey, Oakland City Planning Department , (Image 8 of 19)

At a right angle to L15-20, a southeast view of the Moraga Avenue-Mountain Blvd Freeway intersection from Feb 1, 1956 shows the curve of the SN right-of-way relative to the homes on Estates Drive. Based on other aerials, the position of the curved track after it became a grade crossing with addition of the freeway in 1952 was unaltered from its original position prior to the freeway construction.

L15-25-Copyright California Department of Transportation, Detail 4809-7 , (Image 9 of 19)

Continuing southeast along the right-of-way, this image from Feb. 1, 1956 shows the end of the curved section of track and the formation of a berm along Moraga Avenue up to the Thornhill Drive trestle to the far left.

L15-30-Copyright California Department of Transportation. Detail 4809-6 , (Image 10 of 19)

This southeast image circa 1938 taken by Paul Smith from his sleeping porch at 5644 Estates Drive shows the curved section of track and the Thornhill shelter along the west side of the track and the presence of the block signals.

L15-35-Paul Smith Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 54120sn, (Image 11 of 19)

An additional undated northwest view shows the relationship of the shelter, the block signals, the curve of the track and the houses on the east side of Estates Drive. It should be noted that Moraga Avenue, obscured by the trees, was only two lanes until revision in 1954 to four lanes as seen in L15-25 ... much more on this later.

L15-40-Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 51862sn, (Image 12 of 19)

Combining all the previous elements discussed, now the clinching view, a northwest view from ca. 1940 with SN 1005, taken when the trees to the west had shed their leaves, showing the relationship of the shelter to Moraga Ave. with the homes of Estates Drive in the background as additional landmarks of the location.

L15-42-Arnold Menke Collection, Courtesy John Harder, (Image 13 of 19)

From the previous information, it is now straightforward to assign the location and direction of view of these two unlabeled images with the station platform circa 1938 found in Paul Smith’s scrapbook.

L15-45-Paul Smith Photos, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 54273-74sn, (Image 14 of 19)

So next to ask, “Where was the Thornhill station located relative to Highway 13?” First from the SN passenger era, this northwest view from Feb. 1, 1956 shows the key block signal where the curved track straightens to head to the Thornhill Drive trestle, the latter hidden by the trees at the right.

L15-50-Copyright California Department of Transportation, 4809-2 Detail, (Image 15 of 19)

Further confirmation is provided in terms of comparison to this northwest view from 1955 from the Thornhill Drive trestle. The block signal to the east, or right, of the track is visible, just a few steps from where the berm leveled off with the four-lane Moraga Avenue.

L15-55-Harre Demoro Photo, Courtesy John Harder , (Image 16 of 19)

And back to Nov., 23, 1938, the same information is obtained by this north view south of the trestle, with only a glimpse of two-lane Moraga Avenue just to the left of the trunk of the tree along the left edge of the image. SN 1007 is approaching the next destination in Montclair.

L15-60-Charles Savage Photo, Courtesy BAERA, Western Railway Museum Archive, 10147sn , (Image 17 of 19)

An aerial view from the passenger era, left, and just after SN abandonment, right, of the area of the SN freeway grade crossing. The next image is the same panels with annotations. Refs. left, BUT BUU-289-44 Aug. 2, 1939, courtesy the East Bay Municipal Utility District; right, AV 253 11-23, HJW, 1-12000, May 4, 1957, courtesy Contra Costa County Public Works Department.

L15-65-USDA AAA Western Division and HJW Geospatial Inc, Pacific Aerial Surveys, Oakland CA, (Image 18 of 19)

Annotated version of L15-65. Key roads are labelled. Yellow arrows, SN right-of-way; Orange arrows, Thornhill trestle, just east of Thornhill Drive-Moraga Avenue intersection. To the right of the white arrow, location of the Thornhill SN shelter in 1939. The date of the removal of the shelter is not known, but evidence for its existence after 1941 has not been found.

L15-70-USDA AAA Western Division and HJW Geospatial Inc, Pacific Aerial Surveys, Oakland CA, (Image 19 of 19)