Santa Cruz County has had over 80 railroad stations and stops. (Not all in service at the same time.) Many were temporary and lasted only a year or less. In most cases, the original buildings were torn down though a few were actually moved and re-used.
Pajaro
The major Railroad hub was actually in Pajaro, just across the county line in Monterey County. It had a roundhouse, and a maintenance yard. Originally known as Pajaro Junction, the depot was the hub of agriculture freight transport in the region. When the Watsonville passenger station closed, the Pajaro location was renamed Watsonville Junction. Virtually all railroad buildings at the Pajaro location were removed by 2011.
In 2011 a time capsule was uncovered at the Pajaro railroad office. According to an article in the Register-Pajaronian newspaper of Jan. 5, 1949, the President of Southern Pacific A. T. Mercier and Watsonville Mayor C. H. Baker put the time capsule into the wall of the train depot, behind a plaque showing the year 1949. The capsule was remembered by Jane Borg of Watsonville. She helped organize the recovery. It was recovered in February 2011. Contents included business cards, a quarter from 1945 and three Southern Pacific Bulletins. They are now part of the historical collection of Union Pacific railway. Union Pacific purchased the line in 1996.
Railroad Companies in Santa Cruz County |
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Historic Railroads:
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Modern Railroads
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Existing Railroad Buildings | |
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There might be a private home that was a former Railroad station. It is also likely, the home was built in the same location as the former station.
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