San Fernando Line

Last updated

San Fernando
First Red Car over to North Hollywood, December 16, 1911 (GWMC13).jpg
First car over Cahuenga Pass, December 16, 1911
Overview
Owner Southern Pacific Railroad
Locale Southern California
Termini
Stations36
Service
Type Interurban
System Pacific Electric
Operator(s) Pacific Electric
Rolling stockPE 5050 Class Hollywood Cars (last used)
History
OpenedMarch 22, 1913
ClosedJune 1, 1938 (to San Fernando)
December 28, 1952 (to Van Nuys)
Technical
Line length27.5 mi (44.3 km)
Number of tracks1–2
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in) standard gauge
Electrification Overhead line,  600 V DC
Route map

Contents

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27.47
San Fernando
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San Fernando Mission
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Wheeler
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Hickson
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23.81
Plummer
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Misslanco
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22.81
Mission Acres
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Pacoima Wash
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Midway Park
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Wyondotte
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Whitsert
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Rosita
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Amherst
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19.89
North Sherman Way
terminus
after 1938
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19.11
Van Nuys
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17.72
Circle Drive
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Castro
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Cortez
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16.17
Kester Junction
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Tujunga Wash
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Garnsey
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Sadler
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Eucalyptus
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14.17
North Hollywood
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Hoffman
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11.59
Rio Vista (Los Nogales)
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11.10
Universal City
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Oak Crest
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9.99
Barham Boulevard
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Hollywood Park
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Dusky Glen
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8.65
Cahuenga Pass
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7.84
Highland & Hollywood
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7.09
Highland & Santa Monica
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Colegrove
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Virgil Avenue
  L  
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Sunset Junction
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0
Subway Terminal
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The San Fernando Line was a part of the Pacific Electric Railway system in Los Angeles County, California. It was designed to increase the reach of public transportation from the Downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood into the San Fernando Valley, to support land speculation and development expanding Los Angeles.

History

Southern San Fernando Valley line

Beginning in 1911, a 20-mile (32 km) interurban electric railway was built from Lankershim (present day North Hollywood), the terminus of an existing line from over the Cahuenga Pass from Hollywood, westward through the entire southern San Fernando Valley property of the Los Angeles Suburban Homes Company syndicate, to promote and support small farm and residential property sales. The syndicate was led by Harry Chandler, with partners General Moses Sherman, Isaac Van Nuys, Hobart Johnstone Whitley, and James Boon Lankershim. The project was initiated in anticipation of the Los Angeles aqueduct opening in 1913, which would bring water for residential and irrigated agricultural development in the syndicate's San Fernando Valley holdings (and citywide). The syndicate is the Los Angeles land speculation group dramatized in the movie Chinatown .

The partner General Moses Sherman directed the Los Angeles Pacific Railroad electric railway line's construction. It ran from Lankershim to the three new towns the syndicate's partner Hobart Johnstone Whitley had planned for the valley, Van Nuys, Marion (present day Reseda), and Owensmouth (present day Canoga Park and West Hills). Tracks ran in the middle of Sherman Way, a broad, landscaped, and paved avenue to the Owensmouth terminus.

Northern San Fernando Valley spur

In addition, the San Fernando Mission Land Company of Charles Maclay and George K. Porter, which owned much of the northern San Fernando Valley (north of Roscoe Boulevard), began construction of an electric railway spur line north from Van Nuys, to connect their undeveloped land and the City of San Fernando with the Pacific Electric system. Pacific Electric would eventually take over and finish construction of this line. [1] Service began on March 22, 1913 as a shuttle between San Fernando and Van Nuys, [2] but through service to Los Angeles probably began by that July. [3] From San Fernando, the southbound route followed Brand Boulevard, Sepulveda Boulevard, Parthenia Place, and then Van Nuys Boulevard from present day Panorama City to Van Nuys. Remnants of the right of way include center medians on Brand Boulevard, and roundabouts at the Parthenia Place and Sherman Circle/Van Nuys Boulevard turns.

Later development

Cars were rerouted from the surface to the Hollywood Subway beginning on February 7, 1926. [3]

Postcard depicting the private right of way in the Hollywood Freeway median strip (right of center frame), c. 1940 Cahuenga Pass, Hollywood, Calif (70198).jpg
Postcard depicting the private right of way in the Hollywood Freeway median strip (right of center frame), c.1940

The route originally navigated the Cahuenga Pass in its own right of way on the west side of the state highway. When the Hollywood Freeway was built, the line was relocated to the freeway's median strip. [4] Services were truncated to North Sherman Way on June 1, 1938, [5] [6] and finally replaced by buses on December 28, 1952. [7]

A survey conducted by Caltrans in 1981 reported that almost all of the line had either been removed or paved over for street use. [4]

Redevelopment

Part of the planned East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit Project is expected to reactivate much of the Van Nuys Boulevard corridor for use as a light rail line. Trains will run between the Van Nuys G Line station at the former Southern Pacific right of way and continue north on Van Nuys past the curve where the San Fernando continued operation on Parthenia Street.

Stations

StationMile [8] Major connectionsDate openedDate closedCity
San Fernando27.4719131938 San Fernando
Plummer23.811938
Mission Acres22.811938
North Sherman Way 19.89 Owensmouth 19111952 Van Nuys
Van Nuys 19.11 Owensmouth 19111952
Circle Drive17.72 Owensmouth
Kester (Ethel Avenue)16.17 Owensmouth
Lankershim
(later North Hollywood)
14.17 Owensmouth 19021952 North Hollywood
Rio Vista11.59 Owensmouth
Universal City11.10 Owensmouth
Barnham Boulevard9.99 Owensmouth
Cahuenga Pass8.65 Owensmouth 19021952
Highland & Hollywood7.84 Hollywood, Owensmouth, Venice via Hollywood 19021955Los Angeles
Highland & Santa Monica7.09 Owensmouth, South Hollywood–Sherman
Colegrove Owensmouth, South Hollywood–Sherman 19021955
Virgil Avenue Owensmouth, South Hollywood–Sherman, Western and Franklin Avenue 19021955
Sunset Junction Hollywood, Owensmouth, South Hollywood–Sherman, Venice via Hollywood, Western and Franklin Avenue 19021955
Subway Terminal Building 0 Echo Park Avenue, Glendale–Burbank, Hollywood, Owensmouth, Redondo Beach via Playa del Rey, Sawtelle, South Hollywood–Sherman, Venice Short Line, Venice via Hollywood, Western and Franklin Avenue, Westgate 19251955

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Van Nuys</span> Neighborhood of Los Angeles in California, United States

Van Nuys is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pacific Electric</span> Southern California transit company

The Pacific Electric Railway Company, nicknamed the Red Cars, was a privately owned mass transit system in Southern California consisting of electrically powered streetcars, interurban cars, and buses and was the largest electric railway system in the world in the 1920s. Organized around the city centers of Los Angeles and San Bernardino, it connected cities in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Bernardino County and Riverside County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canoga Park, Los Angeles</span> Neighborhood of Los Angeles

Canoga Park is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles, California. Before the Mexican–American War, the district was part of a rancho, and after the American victory it was converted into wheat farms and then subdivided, with part of it named Owensmouth as a town founded in 1912. It joined Los Angeles in 1917 and was renamed Canoga Park on March 1, 1931, after Canoga, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Fernando Valley</span> Valley in California, US

The San Fernando Valley, known locally as the Valley, is an urbanized valley in Los Angeles County, California. Situated northwards of the Los Angeles Basin, it comprises a large portion of Los Angeles, the incorporated cities of Burbank, Calabasas, Glendale, Hidden Hills and San Fernando, plus several unincorporated areas. The valley is the home of Warner Bros. Studios, Walt Disney Studios, and the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hollywood Freeway</span> Freeway in California

The Hollywood Freeway is one of the principal freeways of Los Angeles, California and one of the busiest in the United States. It is the principal route through the Cahuenga Pass, the primary shortcut between the Los Angeles Basin and the San Fernando Valley. It is considered one of the most important freeways in the history of Los Angeles and instrumental in the development of the San Fernando Valley. It is the second oldest freeway in Los Angeles. From its southern end at the Four Level Interchange to its intersection with the Ventura Freeway in the southeastern San Fernando Valley, it is signed as part of U.S. Route 101. It is then signed as State Route 170 north to its terminus at the Golden State Freeway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moses Sherman</span> Los Angeles land developer (1853–1932)

Moses Hazeltine Sherman was an American land developer who built the Phoenix Street Railway in Phoenix, Arizona and streetcar systems that would become the core of the Los Angeles Railway and part of the Pacific Electric Railway in Los Angeles, California, and owned and developed property in areas such as the westside of Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood, California. He also served on the Los Angeles Water Board. He was also known as M. H. Sherman and General M. H. Sherman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Monica Boulevard</span> East-west thoroughfare in Los Angeles, California, United States

Santa Monica Boulevard is a major west–east thoroughfare in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It runs from Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica near the Pacific Ocean to Sunset Boulevard at Sunset Junction in Los Angeles. It passes through Beverly Hills and West Hollywood. A portion of it is designated as California State Route 2, while the full avenue was Historic Route 66.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Van Nuys station (Los Angeles Metro)</span> Bus rapid transit station in Los Angeles, California

Van Nuys station is a station on the G Line of the Los Angeles Metro Busway system. It is named after adjacent Van Nuys Boulevard, which travels north-south and crosses the east-west busway route and is located in the Van Nuys district of Los Angeles, in the San Fernando Valley. Adjacent to the station is the G Line Bikeway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isaac Newton Van Nuys</span> American land developer

Isaac Newton Van Nuys was an American businessman, farmer and rancher who owned the entire southern portion of the San Fernando Valley, an area 15 miles long and 6 miles wide. With the approach of the Owens River aqueduct and the possibility of intensive small farming, Los Angeles speculators, including Harry Chandler of the Los Angeles Times, combined to buy out Van Nuys in 1909 and develop the San Fernando Valley.

Van Nuys Boulevard is a major north-south arterial road that runs through the central San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles County, California. The boulevard was notable for its cruising lifestyle that was prevalent in the 1960s and 1970s, which was depicted in the 1979 film Van Nuys Blvd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lankershim Boulevard</span> Thoroughfare in San Fernando Valley

Lankershim Boulevard is a major north-south thoroughfare in the eastern San Fernando Valley, primarily within the City of Los Angeles, in Los Angeles County, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glendale–Burbank Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar route (1904–1955)

Glendale–Burbank is a defunct Pacific Electric railway line that was operational from 1904 to 1955 in Southern California, running from Downtown Los Angeles to Burbank via Glendale. Short lines terminated Downtown and in North Glendale, including the popular Edendale Local.

The history of the San Fernando Valley from its exploration by the 1769 Portola expedition to the annexation of much of it by the City of Los Angeles in 1915 is a story of booms and busts, as cattle ranching, sheep ranching, large-scale wheat farming, and fruit orchards flourished and faded. Throughout its history, settlement in the San Fernando Valley was shaped by availability of reliable water supplies and by proximity to the major transportation routes through the surrounding mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Hollywood–Sherman Line</span> Pacific Electric street car line (1896–1953)

The South Hollywood–Sherman Line was a suburban route of the Pacific Electric Railway. The line ran between Downtown Los Angeles and the suburb of Sherman. The line was named after Moses Sherman, who built the line and the Sherman street car yard on the line in West LA. The large 5.56-acre (2.25 ha) rail facility was on Santa Monica Boulevard just west of La Cienega Boulevard. The yard had a steam power house, a car barn and a shop building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Owensmouth Line</span> Former Pacific Electric interurban service

The Owensmouth Line was a Pacific Electric interurban service that connected the San Fernando Valley to Downtown Los Angeles. The route was largely developed as the result of real estate speculation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Beach Line</span> Pacific Electric interurban route in California

The Long Beach Line was a major interurban railway operated by the Pacific Electric Railway between Los Angeles and Long Beach, California via Florence, Watts, and Compton. Service began in 1902 and lasted until 1961, the last line of the system to be replaced by buses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sherman Way station</span> Bus rapid transit station Los Angeles, California

Sherman Way station is a station on the G Line of the Los Angeles Metro Busway system located at Sherman Way in downtown Canoga Park — a community of Los Angeles in the western San Fernando Valley. The station is in service on the Metro G Line Chatsworth Extension. It opened in June 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Owensmouth</span> Former city in Los Angeles

Owensmouth was a town founded in 1912 in the western part of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California. Owensmouth joined the city of Los Angeles in 1917, and was renamed Canoga Park on March 1, 1931. Owensmouth was named for the 1913 Owens River aqueduct's terminus in current Canoga Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Echo Park Avenue Line</span> Pacific Electric streetcar line (1899–1950)

The Echo Park Avenue Line was a Pacific Electric streetcar line in Los Angeles. The railway traveled from 11th and Hill Streets in downtown Los Angeles along the Hollywood Line to Sunset Boulevard where it turned right and proceeded north along Echo Park Avenue to terminate at Cerro Gordo Street in the Echo Park neighborhood.

Picover was a railway station on the former Pacific Electric Owensmouth Line. Now destroyed, it was designated a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument. The name is of unknown origin.

References

  1. "New line will be rushed". The Van Nuys News and Valley Green Sheet. April 5, 1912. p. 1. Retrieved December 11, 2022 via Newspapers.com. Lock-green.svg
  2. "Steel ribbons across valley". The Los Angeles Times . March 22, 1913. p. 17. Retrieved November 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com. Lock-green.svg
  3. 1 2 Veysey 1958 , p. 43
  4. 1 2 "1981 Inventory of Pacific Electric Routes" (PDF). Caltrans. February 1982. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  5. "Modernized Transportation Service in Valley About June 1". The Van Nuys News and Valley Green Sheet. April 25, 1938. p. 1. Retrieved November 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com. Lock-green.svg
  6. "Improved Cars Now in Service". The Van Nuys News and Valley Green Sheet. June 2, 1938. p. 1. Retrieved November 30, 2023 via Newspapers.com. Lock-green.svg
  7. "San Fernando Valley Line". Electric Railway Historical Association of Southern California. Retrieved September 8, 2020.
  8. "Pacific Electric Time Tables" (PDF). wx4's Dome of Foam. Pacific Electric. September 1, 1934. p. 28. Retrieved September 1, 2021.

Bibliography

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