Re: (rshsdepot) Re: Whittier Depot

[William Church <bbjr_@_ix.netcom.com>]

Mark,

Whittier had two SP depots and several PE depots over the years. Our 
first Sp depot was a Plan No.7 located on Evergreen St. which was 
incorporated as the east end of Washington Blvd. It stood from about 
1888 until circa 1940 - it caught fire sometime between 1938 and 1945 
based on aerial photos I have of those years. The restored depot was 
built in 1892, the freight room expanded in 1894 to its current length 
and somewhere about 1910 the freight room caught fire with over half the 
room being lost. I observed fire damage to the existing structure during 
renovation and our Museum archivist discovered a photo taken of the 
Depot soon after the fire as the charred floor joists and walls are 
still in place but workers were beginning to remove the damage, on the 
far side of the depot can be seen what looks like a Ford Model T pickup 
hence my guess of 1910 for a date.

The PE arrived in 1903, the track having been completed on Nov 9. , this 
being prior to its absorbtion by the SP. The early PE depot was in 
several store fronts near the intersection of Greenleaf Ave. and 
Philadelpia St. (on which it traveled), finally taking up home at the 
corner of Philadelphia and Comstock . This building still stands having 
housed many stores since. The tracks were also extended south on 
Greenleaf  two blocks to reach a PE express freight depot though traces 
of this are long gone.

PE reduced its service to Whittier and by the late 1930's it had moved 
its freight depot to the end of the SP depot's platform, access to which 
was via a loop off of Philadelphia. I believe passenger and freight 
service was terminated about 1940 and by 1942 the original SP track into 
town was pulled up and used in San Pedro, passenger and freight access 
for the SP continued via the former PE tracks and a new connection 
across Whittier Blvd  into the Depot complex.

Traces of the original SP and PE rights of way still exist though in the 
PE's case it was built upon with industrial units and a very narrow  
housing tract. While much of the SP line was built upon a short thread 
of it is intact Most easily seen behind the Marie Calender's at 
Washinton and Lambert with the site of the Evergreen Depot now being 
occupied by the Presbyterian Hospital's Out Patient Clinic.

More than you asked, but when I get started I can't stop.

Bill Church

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The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org

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End of RSHSDepot Digest V1 #560
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=================================
The Railroad Station Historical Society maintains a database of existing
railroad structures at: http://www.rrshs.org