The Niles Canyon Railway operates along a portion of the
First transcontinental railroad constructed in the 1860s. The rail line through Niles Canyon was amongst the earliest to be built in California and provided the first rail connection between San Francisco Bay and the rest of the nation.
Construction The
Pacific Railroad Act of 1862 authorized the
Central Pacific Railroad and the
Union Pacific Railroad to build the transcontinental railroad between the Missouri River and the waters of the Pacific. For various reasons, the Central Pacific Railroad reached an agreement with the first
Western Pacific Railroad (1862-1870) (not related to the later company of same name) to build the westernmost portion of the line connecting the Central Pacific in
Sacramento to
San Jose via
Stockton and
Livermore. Trains could then continue to
San Francisco via the
San Francisco & San Jose Rail Road which was completed in 1864. By 1866, the
Western Pacific had built of track north and east from San Jose, reaching halfway into what was then known as
Alameda Cañon, to about Farwell near milepost 33. The Western Pacific used 500 Chinese laborers to grade and construct the rail line into the rugged canyon with its tight curves and narrow banks. Construction was then halted because of disagreements between the railroad's contractors and its financiers. In 1869, the
Central Pacific Railroad, a subsidiary of which had acquired the Western Pacific and
Oakland Point in 1868, restarted work on the railroad line through Alameda Cañon in two opposite directions, both using Chinese laborers. In June 1869, J. H. Strobridge and crew began to lay out a new line starting at a point on the 1866 Western Pacific rails in the west end of
Alameda Cañon (San Jose Junction at MP 30.6) westward out of the canyon towards Oakland, while Turton, Knox & Ryan dispatched workers to continue the railroad in Alameda Cañon eastward from the point where the 1866 Western Pacific rails abruptly stopped. Four major timber
through (Howe) truss bridges were built to cross Alameda Creek and Arroyo de la Laguna Creek. In addition to building wooden bridges and grading the railroad bed, the laborers built culverts, retaining walls, and bridge piers in masonry. By mid-August 1869, the railroad was completed through Alameda Cañon eastward to
Pleasanton and into
Livermore Valley. In September 1869, the railroad from Sacramento through Alameda Cañon to the waterfront
Alameda Terminal at
San Francisco Bay was completed. According to the
Daily Alta California, the first Western Pacific train ran from Sacramento through the canyon on September 6, 1869, to a cheering crowd at
Alameda Terminal, while a few cars switched off at the San Jose Junction for San Jose and Gilroy. This opening of a transcontinental railroad to the Pacific coast, as envisioned by the 1862 Pacific Railroad Act, came four months after the Central Pacific and Union Pacific met at
Promontory Summit, Utah. On November 8, 1869, the intended western terminus opened at the
Oakland Long Wharf, from which
ferries connected to San Francisco. These ferries continued to be the final link for passengers to San Francisco until 1958. At the mouth of Alameda Cañon was
Vallejo Mills, and the San Jose Junction (MP 30.6) was located about a mile east, inside the narrow confines of the cañon. In late 1869 Central Pacific renamed the station for their railroad attorney and stockholder,
Addison Niles, who later became associate justice on the
California Supreme Court. In 1870 a connector was built just west of Vallejo Mills in the valley on the 1869 Central Pacific line to
Oakland, connecting it to the original 1866 Western Pacific line to
San Jose. On April 28, 1870, Central Pacific switched over from the San Jose Junction in the cañon to the new jusnction (MP 29.2) in the valley, Niles. There at the junction in the valley, Central Pacific added a roundhouse and a train depot, complete with a restaurant and saloon for the convenience of the train passengers transferring there. Shortly thereafter, the Vallejo Mills settlement around MP 29.2 became known as
Niles, which has become since 1956 a district within the city of
Fremont. Likewise, Alameda Cañon thereafter became known as
Niles Canyon.
Railroad use When built, the rail line through Niles Canyon was the primary route for overland traffic to and from the San Francisco Bay. A shorter rail line between Oakland and Sacramento was established via the
California Pacific Railroad and a
train ferry at Benicia by 1879. As a result, the original line became less used due to its longer route and its steep grade over Livermore Pass (known today as Altamont Pass). Passenger and freight trains on the line was reduced to local service only. This secondary status was maintained until the early 20th century when the
Southern Pacific Railroad (successor to the Central Pacific) came under the leadership of
E. H. Harriman. Freight traffic in and out of San Francisco had become too heavy for the ferries across the bay and across the
Carquinez Strait to handle. An all land route via San Jose and Niles Canyon was available, but was overly circuitous. Several major capital improvement projects undertaken during this era, including the completion of the
Coast Line and the construction of the
Dumbarton Bridge, revitalized the original line through Niles Canyon. Steel bridges replaced the covered timber bridges at Farwell and Dresser and the small railroad town of Niles became an important junction as freight from the San Francisco Peninsula and produce from the
Santa Clara and
Salinas Valleys traveled through the canyon to points east. Despite these improvements, the few rebuilding programs by the railroad left the Niles Canyon line with many of its original cut-stone bridge abutments, culverts, and retaining walls from the
Western Pacific's original right of way. Many of these stonework built by Chinese laborers in the late 1860s can still be seen today. combined with the movement of
produce traffic to the highways once again left the railroad through Niles Canyon with little business. Southern Pacific ceased its operations through the canyon in 1984, and deeded the land to
Alameda County; the portion over Altamont Pass was briefly reopened in 1985 for "scab trains" to train management crews ahead of a possible union strike. Commercial rail operations through Niles Canyon now operate on a newer line, which is owned by
Union Pacific (formerly
Western Pacific) and also used by the
Altamont Corridor Express (ACE)
commuter train. The
Pacific Locomotive Association leased the right of way from the county and began working to reconstruct the track in 1987. The Niles Canyon Railway ran its first passenger train from Sunol on May 21, 1988. Passenger trains once again connected Sunol and Niles starting on April 9, 2006. The organization continues its work to extend and maintain the track along the line; restore its collection of railroad equipment; and operate historic demonstration trains for the benefit of the public. They plan to eventually extend their demonstration train service to
Pleasanton, California. == Niles Canyon Transcontinental Railroad Historic District ==