Kings Lake Shore Railroad

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kings Lake Shore Railroad
Locale	Corcoran, Kings County, California
Dates of operation	1910–1934
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm) (standard gauge)
Headquarters	Hanford, California

The Kings Lake Shore Railroad was a 19.4 mile common carrier railroad that operated in Kings County, California from 1910-1934. The line primarily hauled agricultural products that grew in this region of the San Joaquin Valley. The line originated with a connection with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway at Corcoran and then ran south-southwest to its terminus at Liberty, California.

Grading for the railroad commenced in 1910 as the Kings River Railroad. The Kings River Railroad was organized to build from the Santa Fe at Corcoran to Tulare Lake. The Kings River constructed 10.05 miles of track.

In May 1917, the Kings Lake Shore Railroad was incorporated and took over the Kings River Railroad. The railroad extended the line another 9.4 miles. In 1923, the railroad acquired Santa Fe Railway's #27, a 4-4-0 American-type Schenectady Locomotive Works (Builder No. 2373) steam locomotive. Abandonment of the line was authorized during the Great Depression on January 22, 1934 and the tracks were removed the same year.

[edit] Route

Corcoran
El Rico (From Durham's Place Names)
Harvester (From Durham's Place Names)
Liberty

[edit] References

Fickewirth, Alvin A. (1992). California railroads: an encyclopedia of cable car, common carrier, horsecar, industrial, interurban, logging, monorail, motor road, shortlines, streetcar, switching and terminal railroads in California (1851-1992). San Marino, CA: Golden West Books. ISBN 0-87095-106-8.
Robertson, Donald B. (1998). Encyclopedia of Western Railroad History - Volume IV - California. Caldwell, ID: The Caxton Printers. ISBN 0-87004-385-4.
Walker, Mike (1997). Steam Powered Video's Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America - California and Nevada, Post Merger Ed., Faversham, Kent, United Kingdom: Steam Powered Publishing. ISBN 1-874745-08-0.
Durham, David L. (2001). Durham's Place Names of Central California: Includes Madera, Fresno, Tulare, Kings & Kern Counties. Word Dancer Press. ISBN 978-1884995330.