The Arcata and Mad River Railroad, (AAR reporting mark AMR), was affectionately known as the "Annie and Mary". AMR's predecessor, the Union Wharf and Plank Walk Company was incorporated on December 15, 1854 to provide access over the mud flats near the town of Union (later Arcata) to ocean going shipping for a distance of 2.7 miles. The track was built on wooden rails overlaid with strap iron. It was a horse-powered railroad from the town to the end of a wharf in Humboldt Bay. Reporting marks on two CP Rail covered hoppers passing Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, June 20, 2004. ... The Redwood Empire (also Redwood Coast or North Coast) is a region of California that stretches from San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon coast. ... Arcata is a city located in Humboldt County, California. ... This article is about the year. ... Rail gauge is the distance between two rails of a railroad. ... A foot (plural: feet) is a non-SI unit of distance or length, measuring around a third of a meter. ... Mid-19th century tool for converting between different standards of the inch An inch is an Imperial and U.S. customary unit of length. ... A millimetre (American spelling: millimeter, symbol mm) is an SI unit of length that is equal to one thousandth of a metre. ... As railways developed and expanded one of the key issues to be decided was that of the rail gauge (the distance between the two rails of the track) which should be used. ... Arcata, California Arcata is a city located in Humboldt County, California. ... A World War II era print advertisement for the Association of American Railroads (AAR). ... Reporting marks on two CP Rail covered hoppers passing Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, June 20, 2004. ... December 15 is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1854 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Arcata is a city located in Humboldt County, California. ... Humboldt Bay is located in Humboldt County along the rugged north coast of California, United States. ...

On June 14, 1875 the Arcata Transportation Company was incorporated and took over the line and converted to steam. June 14 is the 165th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (166th in leap years), with 200 days remaining. ... 1875 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

On July 29, 1881 the Arcata & Mad River Railroad was incorporated. By 1882 the wooden rails were replaced with 35-pound iron rails. In the 1890's the railroad's principal commodities were lumber, shingles, and potatoes. July 29 is the 210th day (211th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 155 days remaining. ... 1881 (MDCCCLXXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ...

The first president of the AMR in 1881 was listed as Francis Korbel. Korbel was also the name of the terminus of the AMR. Passenger service was offered on the AMR but ended on June 6, 1931. June 6 is the 157th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (158th in leap years), with 208 days remaining. ... 1931 (MCMXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link is to a full 1931 calendar). ...

The railroad was eventually extended 7½ miles from Arcata to the Northern Redwood Company mill at Korbel. The Northern Redwood Company was owned by the Charles Nelson Steamship Company. It was over 10 years after the arrival of the Northwestern Pacific Railroad (NWP) in Arcata in 1914 that the steamship company allowed an interchange between the AMR and the NWP at Korblex. During the lumber boom of the 1950s, the Annie and Mary served fifteen shippers on its 7½-mile railroad. The average daily car loadings were enough to place the road among the highest paying railroad properties per mile in the United States. At the time of its closure, AMR ran 4 General Electric 44-tonner diesel-electric locomotives and one Whitcomb 80DE-7b 80 ton diesel-electric locomotive. The Arcata and Mad River Railroad is generally considered the first railroad in California. The Northwestern Pacific Railroad (NWP) was a regional railroad serving the Redwood Empire of Northern California. ... 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... An interchange is a location where two things meet, usually perform some kind of exchange, and possibly go on their ways again. ... George D. Whitcomb, of Chicago, Illinois, started a modest machine shop in 1878, and began the manufacture of coal mining machinery, thus laying the foundation for the concern that became known as The Whitcomb Locomotive Company. ...

On May 24, 1985 the AMR was abandoned. In September 1988 the Eureka Southern Railroad purchased the AMR from Simpson Timber Company for $300,000. The AMR had been closed for the two year period (1986-1988) prior to its purchase by the Eureka Southern. Service was resumed in 1994 by the North Coast Railroad. May 24 is the 144th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (145th in leap years). ... This article is about the year. ...

References

• Robertson, Donald B. (1998). Encyclopedia of Western Railroad History - Volume IV - California, 72-73, Caldwell, Idaho: The Caxton Printers. ISBN 0-87004-385-4.
• Lewis, Edward A. (1996). American Shortline Railway Guide, 5th Edition, 354, Waukesha, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing. ISBN 0-89024-290-9.

Kalmbach Publishing Co. ...

See also

• Northwestern Pacific Railroad