Nevada County Traction Company

Nevada County Traction Company

Overview
Founders	John Martin
Locale	Nevada County, California
Technical
Electrification	550 V DC[1]

The Nevada County Traction Company was an interurban electrified railway in Nevada County, part of the U.S. State of California in the United States of America. It connected Grass Valley and Nevada City, a total of about six miles (9.7 km) of track, using streetcar technology. Construction was in 1901; founder and promoter John Martin intended to build a system connecting the area to Sacramento, the state capital, but this was never seen through. Abandonment was in 1923.[2]

History

The Nevada County Traction Company began as an idea of its primary promoter: John Martin. He was the President of the Marysville Gas and Electric Company, and also had control over the power production of six California cities.[3] Beginning in May of 1901 the railroad ties and rails had been ordered,[4] and construction began a month later on June 6, 1901. On that date a groundbreaking ceremony took place, with the general manager of the railroad: G.H. Fairchild, promising that the railroad would be completed by September 9, 1901.[5] After the railroad was completed there were rumors that the railroad would expand to the Bay Area, considering the relationship between the railroad's directors and their ownership of Gas and Electric companies throughout the state; These hopes however were never realized.[6] The railroad would operate for over a decade before it was purchased alongside its competitor the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad, by the California Midland Railroad, which was a subsidiary of the San Francisco and Northwestern Railway.[7] Despite its purchase, the railroad continued to operate normally for several more years until 1923, when the railroad applied to the state railroad commission and asked for permission to abandon some tracks in Grass Valley.[8] A snowstorm in early 1924 halted service and it was never restarted.[8][9][10] In their application to the state railroad commission to convert operations to buses, the company cited increased automobile usage in the area as suppressing the demand for electricity necessary to run trains.[11]

Rolling stock

Nevada County Traction Company operated four streetcar-style J.Hammond Car Works units.[12]

References

1. Brandon 2018, p. 81.
2. Hilton & Due 1960, p. 405.
3. "NAPA'S GAS PLANT SOLD. Another City's Illumination Interests Comes Under the Domination of John Martin". Marysville Daily Appeal. April 27, 1901. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
4. "TIES AND RAILS ORDERED". Marysville Daily Appeal. May 5, 1901. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
5. "GROUND IS BROKEN FOR NEW RAILWAY". San Francisco Call. June 7, 1901. Retrieved November 13, 2023.
6. "IS THIS A DREAM? The Suspicion That Nevada County Papers Smoke a Choice Brand of Hop May Be Erroneous After All". Marysville Daily Appeal. December 11, 1901. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
7. "NARROW GUAGE[sic]; NEVADA TRACTION; BOTH PART OF DEAL Mr. Aldrich Announces That All Preliminary Work Has Been Accomplished and Actual Track Laying Can Begin". Marysville Daily Appeal. August 10, 1911. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
8. Brandon 2018, p. 77.
9. "Suspension of Car Service Results in Protest". The Morning Union. Grass Valley, California. January 4, 1924. p. 4. Retrieved November 13, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Authorized to Abandon Appurtenances" (PDF). Electric Railway Journal. 65 (5). McGraw-Hill Company: 204. January 31, 1925. Retrieved November 13, 2024.
11. "Autos Cause Trolley Line To Quit Runs". Daily News (Los Angeles). January 15, 1924. Retrieved November 15, 2023.
12. Brandon 2018, p. 83.

Bibliography

• Brandon, Andrew (2018). Railroads of Nevada County. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 9781467128452.
• Hilton, George W. & Due, John Fitzgerald (1960). The Electric Interurban Railways in America. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-4014-2. OCLC 237973.