Book Description

This history covers the lifetime of a small but important California railroad and ferry line which once transported thousands from San Francisco each year north across the bay into Marin County and beyond. The North Pacific Coast Railroad (NPC) was a common carrier narrow gauge steam railroad begun in 1874 and sold in 1902 to new owners who renamed it the North Shore Railroad (California) (NSR) and which rebuilt the southern section into a standard gauge electric railroad. The NPC operated in the northern California counties of Marin and Sonoma that carried redwood lumber, local dairy and agricultural products, express and passengers. The NPC operated almost 93 mi (150 km) of track that extended from a pier at Sausalito (which connected the line via ferry to San Francisco) and operated northwest to Duncans Mills and Cazadero (also known as Ingrams). The NPC became the North Shore Railroad (California) (NSR) on March 7, 1902. In 1907 the North Shore Railroad became part of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad (NWP). Southern portions of the line were standard gauged and electrified by the North Shore for suburban passenger service, though most of the trackage north of San Rafael remained 3 ft (914 mm) gauge until abandonment in the late 1930s. All of the NPC trackage has been abandoned either by the NPC or the NWP. Some of the original right of way can be seen at the Samuel P. Taylor State Park near Fairfax, along the shore of Tomales Bay and Keyes Estuary and passenger depots remain in San Anselmo and Duncan Mills. One NPC steam locomotive, No.12, "The Sonoma," remains as a restored static exhibit in its circa 1870s appearance at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento.