Henry Root privately published his memoirs in 1921. He had worked for the Central
and Southern Pacific Railroads for many years before he became involved in cable cars.
Leland Stanford had been Governor of California in 1862-1863. Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins,
Charles Crocker, and Collis P Huntington, the Big Four, founded and controlled the
Central and Southern Pacific Railroads.
The Contract and Finance Company built much of the Central Pacific line east of
California and its successor the Western Development Company built many other lines controlled by
the Big Four.
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Henry Root in 1920.
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From the Henry Root, Surveyor, Engineer and Inventor, by Henry Root.
CHAPTER 5.
BUILDING THE CABLE RAILROADS OF SAN FRANCISCO
As the result of Stanford, Hopkins and Crocker choosing California
Street hill as a residence location for themselves, they had a special
interest in the street car transportation and as the Clay Street cable line was being
constructed, I was told to study up and keep informed on that subject,
which I did. On June 14, 1876, a franchise was granted for a cable
railroad on California Street from Kearny Street to First Avenue, to
Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, David Porter, Isaac Wormser, P. H.
Canavan, John E. Shawham, E. N. Graves, Edward B. Pond, John Taylor, R.
Adolph Becker, John H. Eddington, Michael Reese, Louis Sloss, David D.
Colton and Chas. Crocker and their assigns.
One day, sometime in 1876, in the office at Fourth and Townsend
Streets, Mr. Montague said, "Henry, come into the Governor's office with
me." We went through Dan Yost's room, he was Stanford's private
secretary at that time. The Governor looked up from his desk and Mr.
Montague said to him; "Henry is in charge of the local work here
including the company's street railroads. In the contemplated building
of a road on California Street, I think it would be better for him to
get his orders from you direct. It is a business that I don't know
anything about and I have other matters that need all my attention,
besides, I am frequently out of town when you might want something."
Governor Stanford said, "All right," and from that time on I had the
plan for the construction of the California
Cable Railroad on my mind. However, I continued to do Central and
Southern Pacific work under Mr. Montague the same as I had been doing
for the past five years.
One of the things I did about 1875 was to locate what is now the main
line from the Oakland wharf (now called the Oakland Mole since it is
filled in), to the Pinole Cut north of San Pablo along the bay shore
past Point Isabel and the "Cerrito," then across the San Pablo Ranch
near Stege's house by a long curve and across Wildcat and San Pablo
Creeks. A. E. Guppy had been for sometime at Martinez locating the line
along the bluffs of the Straits of Carquinez and my line joined on to
his location at the Pinole Cut. While doing this work the party boarded
for a short time at Mr. Stege's house. At this time the San Pablo grant
was held by the occupants by possession as tenants in common and that
protracted litigation of history going on, known as the case of Emerick
vs. Alvarado which was in court about forty years.
This line is near the Shellmound at Emeryville. At this time this
property was owned by Joseph S. Emery, whom I met at that time. There
was also a racetrack there then known as Weird's Track. The Berkeley
branch now leaves the main line at about this point, but the location of
that branch was made later and I did not do it. The work of acquiring
the right of way for the railroad was done by John J. Haley and this was
my first acquaintance with him, and that acquaintance continued up to
the time of his death, March 20, 1899. For a long time he was the
company's agent for obtaining franchises from the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors. The franchise from the city of Oakland, of this San Pablo
line, was granted to the Northern Railway Company by Ordinance No. 657
dated February 12, 1876. During the summer of 1871, Mr. Montague had
sent A. E. Guppy with a party including Lewis Tashiera and W. T. Lambie
as instrument men, to Lake Tahoe on the suggestion of A. W. Von Schmidt
to run a trial line from there to the canon at the head of the north
fork of the American River. Von Schmidt's idea being that a tunnel
constructed on such a line and low enough to tap the lake could be built
at the joint expense of the railroad company and the City of San
Francisco to make that lake available as a source of supply for water
and be used, at the same time, as the main line of the Central Pacific
Railroad.
About the middle of September, 1871, while working in San Francisco,
I received an order from Mr. Montague to drop what I was doing and go
and take charge of the party then on Bald Mountain near Soda Springs and
try to rush the line to a connection with the railroad on the eastern
slope of the mountain. I went by train to Tinker's Station, there got a
mule and rode to Guppy's camp. Found Tashiera had gone to the valley
sick, Guppy was laid up sick in camp and Lambie was so worn out he could
hardly stand on his feet. However, I pitched in, but after several weeks
of hard work there came a heavy storm of rain that turned to snow. We
were almost out of provisions and after some days of shivering in camp
we received word from Mr. Montague to abandon the work and get to the
railroad the best way we could, which we did, taking the instruments and
notes to Sacramento, and I returned to my job at San Francisco.
After service in various places, W. T. Lambie was killed by a cave-in
during the construction of a tunnel by the City of Los Angeles, January
21, 1900. He was acting as a city inspector at the time of his death. In
1873, after the extension and enlargement of Oakland wharf and the
construction of new slips there, and the Alameda and Oakland Railroads
had been consolidated with the Central Pacific, it was decided to
abandon the Alameda Ferry at the foot of Pacific Avenue, Alameda, and to
construct a connecting link between the Seventh Street Local in Oakland
and the track of the Alameda Railroad on Railroad Avenue, now called
Lincoln Avenue, Alameda. Said link of new road to start at Harrison
Street on Seventh, curving toward the south through Harrison Square and
the school lot at the southwest corner of Sixth and Alice Streets,
thence along the center of Alice Street to and across the Estuary on a
bridge made up of spans of about 50 feet each and a swing span in the
navigable channel. Thence (as I remember it the Harrison Square curve
was 12 degrees or 478 feet radius), bringing the line across the bridge
on a curve to the eastward across the salt marsh land and across the
high land of E. B. Mastick and joining the old track of the Alameda Road
by a curve to the eastward. The Oakland city ordinance granting this
franchise for the portion within the limits of that city is No. 534,
approved April 21, 1873.
About that time I relocated and double-tracked the Seventh Street
line from Oakland Point to the place of turn out of this new Alameda
branch at Harrison Street. In this new work, a fill was made between
Center and Adeline Streets, where the original track was on a trestle
and a reverse curve at Market Street cut out in the alignment.
On the San Francisco side of the bay, I had the Southern Pacific
local work to do. The lately constructed line from Potrero Avenue and
Ninth Street to a connection on the line of Townsend Street, gave me
much trouble at first, as the trestle had been constructed on a grade
below and not conforming to the official grade of the cross streets as
established by the city, and close by was the open waterway of Mission
Creek with mud banks so that embankment material placed there slid into
the creek. The city had also let a contract to grade the block of
Potrero Avenue at our crossing to the official city grade which would
bury our track several feet deep. The only remedy I could think of for
this bad situation, was to close Mission Creek as an open water-way
above Ninth Street and build a large sewer along its general course for
drainage. I reported the situation to Mr. Montague and Colonel Gray and
talked with Mr. Haley and Judge Robert Robinson of the Law Department
and they agreed with me that the way out of the trouble was to get an
Act of the Legislature authorizing the change and providing means of
carrying it out. So Mr. Haley got instructions to carry out the
preliminary part of the work. At that time the men most influential in
the Mission were John Center, Claus Spreckels and Joseph Sedgeley, all
large property holders along the creek. Haley got them all to join the
company in a petition to the Legislature and an Act was passed for
laying out a new street and constructing the sewer as asked for. I think
this was in 1874.
Ever since I had been on construction work, I had been studying
concrete. The reading of General Gilmour's work on "Hydraulic Cement,
Lime and Mortar" led in that direction and I thought the construction of
this large sewer was the opportunity and the City Engineer at that time,
William P. Humphreys, agreed with me at first, but when he heard the
howl of the bricklayers against using anything but brick, he changed his
mind and I had to be satisfied with brick, and it was so built.
In 1876, soon after the franchise had been granted to Stanford and
others for a cable railroad on California Street, Mr. Haley made
arrangements for the interested parties to view the ground and talk
matters over. It was expected that Stanford, Crocker and Hopkins would
be the largest stockholders, but Stanford wanted all the prominent men
living in the vicinity to be interested. P. H. Canavan, who had been a
Commissioner in building the City Hall, was the most active but he told
the others at the beginning that he had but little money to put in.
David Porter, who lived opposite the Stanford house where a part of the
Fairmont Hotel now stands, was also active in getting the scheme started
but could only pay for a few shares of stock. Isaac Wormser, who lived
on California Street, near Franklin Street, also took an active
interest. On the day appointed, I was asked to go along, and most of the
incorporators were there, but Crocker and Hopkins did not go. After
looking over the ground from Kearny Street to Pierce Street, Mr. Wormser
invited the whole party to his house where he set out champagne. The
location for a power house was talked over and it was left with Mr.
Canavan, Haley and myself to pick a location and report. At this time it
seemed to be taken for granted, by all, that I was to be the
constructing engineer.
The Clay Street hill cable railroad from Kearny Street to Leavenworth
Street had been constructed and put in operation in 1873. It was
constructed mostly of wood and was considered an experiment, so a low
construction cost was the controlling consideration. It was owned by
four men, but they obtained some money by donations from property owners
who expected to be benefited by the project. These four men were Andrew S. Hallidie, Joseph Britton,
Henry L Davis and James K. Moffitt. Hallidie was president of the California
Wire Works and the manufacture of wire rope suitable for cable railroads
was a part of his business. He was born in Scotland and his name there
was Andrew Hallidie Smith but on being naturalized in the United States,
he transposed the last two names and made it Andrew Smith Hallidie.
Joseph Britton was of the well-known firm of Britton and Rey,
lithographers and map makers. Henry L. Davis had been Sheriff of the
City and County of San Francisco and James K. Moffitt was of the
well-known wholesale paper house of Blake, Moffitt & Towne. Mr. Hallidie
had more to do in the mechanical line than the other partners so the
work of designing was done largely at Hallidie's place and under his
direction. A German draftsman named William
Eppelsheimer did considerable of that work and later obtained some
patents in that line. However, Hallidie claimed the principal inventions
as his own.
John J. Haley, who died March 20, 1899, was then an old man and one
of the kind who "knew everybody." He had been in various kinds of
business, among others keeping the International Hotel at Kearny and
Jackson Streets and he knew all the owners of the Clay Street railroad
intimately. At one time it was a saying that the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors had thirteen members, twelve elected and one appointed, that
one was John J. Haley. In Mr. Haley's talk with the Clay Street Railroad
folks, they told him that they had broad patents covering any cable
railroad that could be built, but they would join the Stanford parties
in building on California Street provided a proper compensation was
allowed them for the use of their patents and Mr. Haley understood from
them that $40,000.00 was their idea of such a price; and further, that
they would take one-half of the stock of the California Street Company,
but the construction plans must be subject to their approval. On this
being reported to Governor Stanford, he said, in substance, this: "If I
undertake to build the California Street road, I am going to determine
what plans will be used and if our lawyers say we infringe any of the
patents owned by the Clay Street folks, we will pay them a fair price
for them," However, no agreement was reached and the California Street
Railroad Company was formed and the Clay Street Railroad folks were not
in it finally.
I was told to make an estimate of the cost of a road on my plan of an
all concrete and metal structure, said road extending from Kearny Street
to Fillmore Street with the engine house and car house at the southeast
corner of Larkin and California Streets, including real estate, rolling
stock and everything necessary to do business with, and I reported
$350,000 as such probable cost. Charles Crocker had taken no part so far
except to allow his name to be used as one of the grantees of the
franchise and had assigned his interest. Mark Hopkins on hearing of the
probable cost said it was too much money to get back in five cent pieces
and he told me. "It would probably pay a dividend at the same time as
Hotel de Hopkins," meaning his own residence then building on California
and Mason Streets. However, Stanford went ahead taking the stock of his
associates until, of the 5,000 shares of the corporation, he had 4,750,
although I think he felt as if his associates in the Market Street Railroad should have stayed
in as the experience gained would accrue to their benefit as well as his
own. The Contract and Finance Company and the Western Development
Company took no part in this construction.
In the designing of the road structure of the California Street
Railroad, I wanted a new kind of rail and I wrote to the manufacturers
for a cost estimate and they had answered that they did not want to make
it as it would require new rolls and the size of the proposed order did
not justify the cost. When Mr. Huntington was in San Francisco the next
time, I told him about it and he asked me who I wanted to make the
rails. I said the "Cambria." He said, "They will roll them for me. Give
me the template of the cross section and specification and I will order
them when I get back to New York." He did so and the rails were shipped
overland, the freight on them being $33.00 per ton. However, it was of
light weight, only 36% Ibs. per yard, but good quality of steel.
At the commencement of this work in 1876, I had with me as draftsman,
Colonel Charles Buckley and he made the tracings I gave to Mr.
Huntington. Colonel Buckley had been to Alaska in charge of the
Russian-American Telegraph Expedition to build a telegraph line to
connect with a cable across Bering Straits to Siberia, but the progress
was slow and on the demonstrated success of the Atlantic cable, the
Buckley expedition was abandoned. He had been an old friend of Mr.
Haley, but was broken down in health and soon gave up his job with me.
Then I got George Watriss as draftsman. He had worked on engines and
steam-boat work and was a useful man.
The engine house lot had been purchased and the material procured so
I started a gang of men at work on the road construction in California
Street just east of Larkin Street on July 5, 1877, with "old man" Wright
in charge of the gang. The engines were built by Wallace W. Hanscom, the
owner of the Hope Iron Works on the Potrero, from drawings made largely
by Watriss ; the boilers of the locomotive type, by Hinckley, Spiers &
Hayes and considerable of the machinery by William H. Birch & Company at
119 Beale Street, San Francisco. T. J. Thomas was head carpenter and
model maker and my righthand man. About this time William H. Milliken,
who had been shop foreman in the Central Pacific Shops at Sacramento,
came to work for me as master mechanic. Capt. N. T. Smith was treasurer
of the company and paid all bills. W. T. Hinchman was appointed by
Governor Stanford as secretary and accountant. The entire working force
was under my charge and I made most of the purchases of material. The
road was open for business in April, 1878, from Kearny to Fillmore
Streets. There was some delay in the opening date by hot-boxes in the
engine bearings, but finally that difficulty was overcome. In fitting up
the grips and car-brakes, I had the services of George W. Douglas who
was the best man in the country for that work. I had known him since
1869 when he was Master Car Builder for the Omnibus Railroad Company, the first street
railroad in San Francisco. His work required great skill and Douglas had
that.
During the spring of 1879, an extension of the road was built from
Fillmore Street to a new terminal in California Street about 150 feet
west of Central Avenue now called Presidio Avenue, but instead of using
the ribs made of old railroad iron embodied in concrete and paved with
basalt blocks and grouted with Portland cement mortar as in the original
road, a square wood frame was used and a plank roadway. The reason for
doing this was that the company had no debt and was paying a dividend
and they wanted to pay for any additional construction out of the
earnings. This extension was put into use Decoration Day, May 30, 1879.
However, this trying to economize on first cost, was a mistake and after
a few years, this extension was built over, similar to but not exactly
like the original plan of construction.
Thomas Seale, a brother of Henry Seale of Menlo Park who was a friend
of Leland Stanford had worked for me as a foreman and after the road was
in full operation, Stanford appointed him superintendent to operate the
road and I gave most of my time to preliminary plans for the conversion
of the Market Street road, then a horse-car line, and its contemplated
branches, into a cable railroad system. However, I continued to do work
for the California Street road for some time after. Hinchman, the
secretary, and Thomas Seale, the superintendent, both friends of and
appointed by Stanford, were always hostile to each other, so it made a
disagreeable situation and I think this was the moving cause of Stanford
selling out his controlling interest in the road to other capitalists,
first Lloyd Tevis and D. O. Mills, then Charles Mayne, Robert Watt, J.
B. Stetson, Antone Borel and others. The same rails I had put down in
the original construction of the California Street road from Kearny
Street to Fillmore Street, remained in continuous use during working
hours (except about four months at the time of the earthquake of April,
1906), -- from April, 1878, to July, 1909, a period of about 31 years,
and the same slot rails are now in good condition after 43 years' use.
====================================================================
In the year 1890, the company decided to extend the road eastward to
Market Street and to build a cross-town line along Hyde Street from the
north end at Beach Street to Pine Street, then east two blocks on Pine
Street to Jones Street and along it to Market Street; also, down
O'Farrell Street to Market Street. This work was carried out at the time
J. B. Stetson was president of the company. James W. Harris, who
commenced work for me building the extension in April, 1879, was
operating superintendent. J. C. H. Stut was mechanical engineer and
designer of the machinery Howard C. Holmes was engineer of the road
construction. In the operation of the right angle route to California
Street in addition to the original line, it was decided best to move the
location of the power and carhouse from the southeast corner of
California and Larkin Streets to the southwest corner of California and
Hyde Streets and to procure new engines and driving machinery. The
character of the car was also changed from a closed car, coupled to an
open grip car or "dummy" to a single body mounted on two, four wheel
trucks, the grip being hung in one of the trucks but capable of being
operated from either end. The car, so arranged, had a closed body in the
center and an open section on each end. This truck arrangement was
copied after the Market Street cars then in operation, but the
California Street slots were arranged for a switch while the Market
Street systems' slots were arranged to run always forward so had to turn
around for the return trip. The cross-town line, also had several other
cable lines to cross, having a superior right by reason of being on the
ground first with an older franchise which made it necessary to modify
the form of grip bottom used on the cross-town lines. James W. Harris
has lately been elected president of the company to succeed J. Henry
Meyer, the banker. From the time of the completion of the Market Street
system, namely, along Valencia to the car-house at Twenty-eighth Street;
the Haight Street branch, a new road from Market Street to Stanyan
Street ; and the McAllister Street line from Market Street along
McAllister Street to Central Avenue, thence diagonally southwesterly
across the block between the engine house of that branch and the
carhouse to Masonic Avenue and Fulton Street thence along Fulton Street
to Stanyan Street; my mind had followed the progress of the cable
railroad business in the eastern states.
The building of the Hayes Street branch at a later date with its
independent power and carhouse near Masonic Avenue was in charge of Fred
Tucker who had worked for me on the latter part of the California Street
work while the chimney and carhouse work was done by the Pacific
Improvement Company men from Fourth and Townsend Streets. However, this
branch was a duplication of other Market Street appliances, as it was a
branch of the main system. At this time, that portion of the Market
Street system from the junction of Valencia Street to Castro Street was
operated by steam-dummy engines, but this part of the line and an
extension of it along Castro Street to Clipper Street was rebuilt as a
cable line later. The driving apparatus for the cable of this line had
been provided for in the main driving machinery located at the junction
of Market and Valencia Streets, there being four main cables driven from
that plant; namely, one to the Ferry and return; one on Valencia Street
to Twenty-eighth Street and return; one on Haight Street to Stanyan
Street and return and one along Market Street curving into Castro Street
and along that street to Clipper Street and return. This last named
cable construction on the Market Street extension and Castro Street was
in charge of L. M. Clement who took charge of the local work in San
Francisco after I became engaged in looking after my patent interests in
the eastern states. I worked in San Francisco after that, however, but
always with the understanding that I could drop it and go at any time I
might think it to be to my advantage.
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48
Hyde Streets and to procure new engines and driving
machinery. The character of the car was also changed
from a closed car, coupled to an open grip car or "
dummy" to a single body mounted on two, four wheel
trucks, the grip being hung in one of the trucks but
capable of being operated from either end. The car,
so arranged, had a closed body in the center and an
open section on each end. This truck arrangement was
copied after the Market Street cars then in operation,
but the California Street slots were arranged for a
switch while the Market Street systems' slots were
arranged to run always forward so had to turn around
for the return trip. The cross-town line, also had several
other cable lines to cross, having a superior right
by reason of being on the ground first with an older
franchise which made it necessary to modify the form
of grip bottom used on the cross-town lines. James
W. Harris has lately been elected president of the company
to succeed J. Henry Meyer, the banker.
From the time of the completion of the Market Street
system, namely, along Valencia to the car-house at
Twenty-eighth Street; the Haight Street branch, a new
road from Market Street to Stanyan Street ; and the McAllister
Street line from Market Street along McAllister
Street to Central Avenue, thence diagonally southwesterly
across the block between the engine house of that
branch and the carhouse to Masonic Avenue and Fulton
Street thence along Fulton Street to Stanyan Street;
my mind had followed the progress of the cable railroad
business in the eastern states.
Soon after the Clay Street cable road was in operation,
Henry Casebolt, who owned a controlling interest in the
Sutter Street Railroad
Company, a horse car line, commenced making preparations to change the
Sutter Street line from horse to cable power. Casebolt, himself, was a
carriage and car builder by trade and he had, in his employ,
Asa E. Hovey, generally known as "Yank," as master mechanic and inventor.
Casebolt was hostile to the Clay Street people and he told Hovey that
they would invent a cable system of their own better than Hallidie's but
he wanted their construction to be cheap in first cost so they started
with this cheapness of construction as the controlling idea. Hovey
invented a gripping device entirely different from Hallidie's, the
operating mechanism being within the underground tube and the cable was
grasped by rollers instead of fixed dies and the power was applied by
the operator by a lever working through the slot into the tube instead
of a screw working through a nut in the center of a hand-wheel as was
done in the Hallidie grip. The tube was built of wood, switches were
used instead of turn-tables at the terminals and a separate open dummy
was used, the power house being located at Larkin, south of Bush Street
and west of Larkin Street. This cable road along Sutter Street from
Sansome to Larkin Street was put in operation in 1876 between two
sections of horse-operated road of the same company and was fairly
successful but had many troubles and had to make numerous changes.
However, they continued to operate without paying any royalty for the
Hallidie patents till all the cable patents owned by the Hallidie
parties, Hovey, Casebolt and myself were acquired by the Pacific Cable
Railway Company and all of the Railroad Company's operating cable
railroads west of the 106th degree of longitude, west from Greenwich,
took out a blanket license from that company. This was about the year
1885.
CHAPTER 6.
BUILDING THE CABLE RAILROADS OF SAN FRANCISCO. (CONTINUED).
The construction of the California Street Cable Railroad in 1877 was
not an epoch making event in railroad transportation, but was in the use
of concrete construction. It was the first use of a structure made up of
wrought metal buried in concrete and moulded to form in place, and it
was completely successful although the quality of the concrete used in
that construction was not of a high grade and the cost per yard in place
was low. At that time the retail price of Portland cement was $5.50 per
barrel, while plenty of Rosendale or natural cement could be had for
$2.75 per barrel, so I used the Portland sparingly and the mass was a
mixture of Niles gravel, a little sand, Rosendale cement and lime paste
equal to about 10% of the volume of neat cement. The concrete was mixed
at the yard by the railroad track on Berry Street and hauled to the work
along California Street in horse carts after mixing. In all plastering,
grouting, setting machinery, etc., the Portland cement was used. At that
time, English wet process cement was the only kind on the market here,
but a few years later there was plenty of German, Belgian and French
makes to be had. "Dykerhoff" brand of German cement was considered to be
A-l. The dry process of the German manufacturers had greatly increased
the capacity of the works. At this time and long after, but few people
understood the meaning of the words "Portland cement" and even now many
people do not understand its meaning. The foundation of the art of its
manufacture was the English patent granted to Joseph Aspdin, a
bricklayer of Leeds, No. 5022, of December 18, 1824, and as it resembled
Portland stone when used, he gave it the name of Portland cement, but
the cement was never manufactured in Portland. The principles set out in
that patent for the manufacture of an artificial hydraulic cement by
mixing exact proportions of lime and clay and burning the mixture in a
kiln, then grinding the product to a powder, is now in use the world
over. I do not believe there is any other single invention equal to it
in importance at the present time.
In 1882, at the time of the building of the Market Street Cable
Railroad system, there was not enough of it made in the United States to
cut any figure in the market price. That used in this country was
principally of English make, London being the chief source of supply,
while on June 1, 1908, for use on the Panama Canal, bids were received
for furnishing 4^2 millions of barrels of American-Portland cement and
the contract was awarded to the Atlas Portland Cement Company of
Northhampton, Pa., at the price of $1.19 per barrel, delivered "over the
rail to ship" at Hoboken, N. J., and about 5% millions of barrels were
so delivered and used in the construction of the canal. The cement so
furnished was about of the same quality as that I had paid $5.00 per
barrel for in San Francisco in 1877 and used in the California Street
Railroad construction. However, the price of foreign made Portland
cement declined steadily as the manufacture of it increased in this
country so that at the time of commencing the construction of the Market
Street system, it was decided to use Portland cement only and to abandon
the use of Rosendale to any extent. I have a memorandum of the purchase
"to arrive" from Balfour, Guthrie & Company -- 3,000 barrels English
Portland cement -- K. B. & S. brand, at $3.37% per barrel on January 10,
1881. This was about the average price paid for the cement used in the
construction of that system during the years 1881-1882 and 1883. About
43,000 barrels were used for that purpose.
But to return to the year 1877. When I had made up my mind how the
California Street Cable Railroad should be built, I asked Governor
Stanford this question: "In building this road, what consideration is to
be given to the question of patents, as we know the Clay Street people
claim to have patents covering any cable road and that the Sutter Street
construction was an infringement." He said, "You are the doctor; go
ahead and build the best road that can be built and if our lawyers say
that you infringe the Clay Street folks' patents, we will pay for them,
but if they say you did not infringe, we will not pay till we have to."
I went ahead, under these instructions, not thinking of getting
patents myself, as my ideas at that time were entirely defensive. But,
on the completion of that road, and the starting on the Market Street
work, Mr. Montagne said to me, "If I was in your place, I would patent
these new devices yourself as a defensive measure." However, I was a
little cautious about doing so for fear of offending the owners of the
road but later on, as the patent attorney employed by the company,
Milton A. Wheaton, advised me to do the same thing, I did it, but rather
late as my most valuable patent was beaten in the Supreme Court of the
United States on the ground that it had been in public use on the
California Street road while I was in charge, for a period of more than
two years, before I applied for the patent. That patent was No. 22,126
granted August 1, 1882, to Henry Root for, "Improvement in the
construction of cable railways," and the title of the case was "Root vs.
the Third Avenue Railroad Company" and is reported in 146 United States,
page 210. At the time of this suit, which was decided November 21, 1892,
by the Supreme Court of the United States, this patent, with many others
owned by me, were pooled by me with those owned by the National Cable
Railway Company of New York, which company then maintained an office at
room 25, 140 Nassau Street, New York, so while the suit was entirely in
my name against the New York Company, mine was a forty per cent interest
only and the National Cable Railway Company had a sixty per cent
interest. This pooling contract was made October 21, 1885, for territory
east of the 106th Meridian and was the outcome of a settlement made
between all of the principal owners of cable railroad patents on the
Pacific Coast including the Hallidie, Sutter Street and Stanford
parties.
In the summer of 1883, the Hallidie folks had arranged with prominent
New York capitalists and promoters to form a corporation under the laws
of New York for the purpose of introducing cable railroads in the
Eastern States and had retained eminent patent lawyers, including George
Harding, Sr., of Philadelphia, and John E. Bennett of New York, and
asserting the claim that all the cable railroads in the United States
were infringers of the fundamental patents owned by them. William P.
Shinn, 2 Wall Street, New York, was elected president of the National
Company and James Gamble, formerly manager of the telegraph company in
San Francisco, was manager. This move, and the advertising done by the
National Company, was largely propaganda to bluff the railroad companies
already in operation to buy licenses under the threat of suits and
injunctions. However, it did not work that way.
During all these times my work had been varied and had been
considerably divided up. In the summer of 1881, after I had started work
at the Market Street power house, Mr. Montague fitted out an engineering
party for the exploration of the country north of the Union Pacific
Railroad and parallel to it. I took an interest in the fitting out of
the party under Warner who had worked under me in San Francisco and my
nephew, George M. Talcott, went with the party. I kept in touch with
their movements during the time they were out. First, they went to
Pacific Springs in Wyoming, which is about north of where the city of
Rock Springs now is, said Pacific Springs being on the divide between
the Big Sandy and Sweetwater Rivers, the former flowing into Green
River, the Colorado, and eventually into the Pacific Ocean; and the
Sweetwater into the North Platte and finally reaching the Gulf of
Mexico. The running of this line by the Central Pacific Company was
largely in the nature of a counter bluff against the Union Pacific
Company which had been running lines parallel to the Central and
threatening to extend their road to the Pacific Coast. This initial
point at Pacific Springs, had strategical advantages as to connections
leading west. This line run by Warner's party from there eastward, was
along the Sweetwater River and the Neobrara River to Fort Neobrara and
ended at O'Neill, Nebraska. Then the party went to Fremont, Nebraska,
and from there returned to San Francisco about November 14, 1881, where
Warner worked up his notes at Fourth and Townsend Streets. My nephew,
George Talcott, returned here with the party but he concluded he had
rather be out in the field with a surveying party than to work here with
me on construction work so the next year he went up on the Oregon line
with a locating party. I have a letter written by him from the
engineers' camp in the Sacramento River canon, 18 miles above the town
of Redding, dated May 6, 1882. I rather favored his going as he began to
show indications of failing health which continued to grow worse till he
returned to his home in Vermont where he died of consumption.
There was considerable delay after the completion of the California
Street Cable Railroad in completing and putting in operation the cable
system on Market Street. In the meantime, I was working out plans,
making models, and applying for patents on my inventions used on
California Street and proposed to be used on the Market Street system.
There were so many preliminary questions to be settled. The Market
Street lines at this time ran from the waterfront to Twenty-sixth
Street; also, one line branched off at Ninth and Market Streets ran
along Hayes Street to Laguna Street, along it to McAllister Street, to
Fillmore Street, along it to Tyler Street (now Golden Gate Avenue), and
along it to Steiner Street, and along it to O'Farrell and along
O'Farrell to Divisadero Street, the terminus of that branch. These two
lines were in operation as horse-car lines and were profitable. Of
course it would cost more to build for cable operations and keep the
horse cars running at the same time, but on the other hand, it would
inconvenience the patrons and the company might lose patronage by
shutting down operations for eight months or a year during the
reconstruction. Finally we decided to keep the horse cars running by
temporary tracks and shifting sections and the work was carried out that
way.
Another question was how the business should be done. On the
California Street work, I had been the head of everything and doing
nearly everything by force accounts, but in the Market Street Company
the ownership was in four parties instead of being practically in one,
Stanford, as it had been there. Charles Crocker wanted the accounts and
purchasing to be done by their inside company which had been changed in
name from the Western Development Company to the Pacific Improvement
Company. Stanford was satisfied to do the same as before, however,
Crocker had his way and on the 1st of December, 1880, the bills and
payrolls for preliminary work theretofore paid by the Market Street
Company of which J. L. Willcutt was secretary and N. T. Smith,
treasurer, were turned over to F. S. Douty as secretary of the Pacific
Improvement Company.
The next question was providing the cash to pay for it. My estimate
of the cost was a million and a half dollars. Through financial agents
the information came that James C. Flood would take two million dollars
of the bonds bearing six per cent interest at par and pay cash for them.
It was decided to authorize a three million dollar issue, secured by a
mortgage on all the property of the Market Street Cable Railway Company
so as to have a surplus for future extensions. The bonds were not ready
when the bills began to be due so the first money used was borrowed on
short term notes signed by Stanford, Crocker, Hopkins and Huntington.
The two million dollars in Market Street Cable Railway bonds were
finally delivered to James C. Flood as soon as they were ready and the
cash obtained for them by the Pacific Improvement Company. On the
completion of the McAllister Street line and allowing a fair value for
the real estate occupied, which the company already owned, the cost was
about $1,750,000.
CHAPTER 7.
RAILROAD FRANCHISES AND PATENTS.
On November 28, 1879, a new franchise had been granted by the Board
of Supervisors to the Market Street Cable Railway Company for a term of
fifty years from its date of passage, and most of the other street car
companies obtained similar franchises, but by the time the bonds were
ready and financial arrangements were made, about two and one-half of
the fifty years the franchise had to run had already expired, so a new
ordinance was passed at the request of the company on June 5, 1882,
being No. 1676 with the same enacting clause "for the term of fifty
years from and after the passage of this order." The effect was to
extend the term of the most valuable franchise about two and one-half
years without making the real purpose of the company noticeable to the
public or to the other railroad companies. This ordinance was signed by
John A. Russell, clerk, and M. C. Blake, Mayor, and ex-officio President
of the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco.
This franchise will expire June 5, 1932.
As soon as the Central Pacific owners were established in their new
general office building on the hundred vara lot at the northerly corner
of Fourth and Townsend Streets, they began looking for residence
locations. Crocker had traveled much since the Overland route was
completed having been around the world. Stanford also traveled, his
trips were usually to New York and Europe. Mark Hopkins stayed in San
Francisco most of the time. Huntington was a resident of New York and
had been so since Theodore D. Judah died there in 1863, when Huntington
assumed charge of all Central Pacific business in New York, but he made
long visits to San Francisco and was in constant correspondence with his
private business partner, Mark Hopkins, in the hardware business of
Huntington, Hopkins & Company.
The California Street Hill was the location chosen for a residence
and extensive work of grading for the Stanford residence was started
about 1874, on the easterly half of the block between California and
Pine Streets, Powell and Mason Streets. Hopkins had also purchased the
westerly half of the same block next to Mason Street. Stanford had
selected S. C. Bugbee & Sons as architects of his house and Hopkins
employed Wright & Saunders as his architects. I had the engineering in
setting lines and grades for the work but the plans were made by the
architects so I worked to their plans.
Soon after, Charles Crocker purchased most of the block bounded by
California, Sacramento, Taylor and Jones Streets for his residence at
the corner of California and Taylor, but he started his grading work
before he had secured all the frontage in that block on Sacramento
Street. He finally purchased all but one 25 foot lot on Sacramento
Street, this one lot was owned by Yung, the undertaker. He failed to
come to any agreement with Crocker as to price so Crocker went ahead,
completed his residence and then built a high fence around the Yung
house and lot, which was an isolated piece out of the Crocker grounds.
This controversy gained wide notoriety, the fence being known as a
"spite fence." It remained there till after Crocker's death, when his
heirs purchased the lot. Crocker's railroad experience in obtaining
right of way for that purpose with the right to take private property
without the consent of the owner by paying the appraised value, had led
him to think he could do the same thing for his own personal purposes.
David D. Colton, known as General Colton, had a fine residence built
a few years before on the westerly half of the block bounded by
California, Sacramento, Mason and Taylor, now Huntington Park. He was
friendly with all the railroad people and was the social chum of Charles
Crocker. He was reputed to be a millionaire and well known in San
Francisco society and I believe it was largely due to Colton's influence
that the railroad people located their residences where they did. About
the first of the year 1875, Colton came into the railroad office at
Fourth and Townsend Streets, he was elected a director of several of the
railroad corporations and was generally looked up to as one of the
owners in connection with Stanford, Crocker, Hopkins and Huntington and
remained so up to the time of his death, October 9, 1878. After his
death, however, it developed that his financial interests in the company
were always small and that his influence was more one of personality
than of property. His death was very sudden and has always been
something of a mystery. Charles E. Green, later one of the directors of
the Crocker National Bank, came to the railroad building in 1875 as
private secretary to General Colton ; later, and for many years after,
he held the same position for Charles Crocker and for his oldest son,
Charles Frederick Crocker, then known as "Fred," later as "Colonel
Fred," his title being acquired by an appointment on the staff of
Governor Perkins with the rank of colonel.
I have omitted to state the fact that in the party that made the
first trip over the ground on California Street in 1876 by the grantees
of the franchise, was E. J. Robinson, son of Robert Robinson of the
Central Pacific Law Department; also, A. S. Hallidie and Joseph Britton
of the Clay Street road. E. J. Robinson was named by Stanford to
organize the company and he was elected its secretary, which position he
held until the appointment of T. W. Hinchman, some time in 1877.
In the operation of the cable railroads then running, I noticed that
the stranding of the cable and not the ultimate wearing out was the
great drawback to their successful operation, so I tried to study up the
process of manufacture to find some way of overcoming that difficulty.
In connection with my other railroad inventions I had models made by T.
J. Thomas and George W. Douglas in the year 1881 of a machine for the
manufacture of wire rope at one operation, from the single wires into
strands and from the strands into the finished cable, the usual practice
was to do these things at separate operations, and I was trying to
invent a sewing attachment in the laying head of this large machine by
means of a shuttle carrying a small wire to prevent any strand, if cut,
from unraveling and bunching up in the cable tube. However, I never got
this auxiliary attachment perfected and put in operation, but did get a
patent on the main machine, that patent is No. 405744 dated June 25,
1889, granted to Henry Root for "machine for making wire rope." The
application for this patent was filed May 6, 1881.
Before I obtained this patent I had long contests in interference in
the patent office and made a settlement with the Washburn, Moen Company,
Worcester, Massachusetts, in regard to territorial rights; also
purchased the patents of M. M. Zellars of Kent, Ohio, for a similar
purpose, dated April 10, 1883, No. 275743, paid him $1250.00 for it.
Zellars made the assignment to me in Cleveland, Ohio, October 2, 1886.
On the 19th of October, 1886, I made the settlement with Washburn, Moen
Company, in regard to the Wiswell patents, but this was an exchange and
no money was paid. At this time I met and talked with both the elder
Washburn and Philip Moen, then the president of that company. Mr. Moen
expressed surprise at my age as he said he had heard of me frequently
through their agents' attorneys and he expected to find me a man, at
least, sixty years old. However, I had a pleasant interview with both of
them. John C. Dewey, their attorney, drew the necessary papers which
both parties executed there, this removed the danger of a suit for
infringement in building a machine like my invention, which was my
object in this transaction.
A wire rope making machine following my invention was built at the
expense of the Market Street Cable Railway Company and set up and
operated in the rear end of the Engine House at the junction of Market
and Valencia streets after all these lines were in operation. However,
after making their own ropes for a couple of years, arrangements were
made by which the ready-made cable could be obtained as cheap as the
wire required to make it, so the machine was laid up.
CHAPTER 8.
SALE OF CABLE RAILROAD PATENTS IN THE EASTERN STATES.
From the summer of 1884 to the year 1892, the street railroad
business in the eastern states, that is to say, east of the 106th degree
of longitude, west from Greenwich, which is about fifty miles west of
Denver, was the principal subject of my thoughts and movements. By the
contract with the National Cable Railway Company, the sale of patents in
that territory had been delegated to that company. Three pieces of
territory had been excepted from that pooling agreement for the reason
that the National had sold its rights to that territory before their
contract with me, so that they had to except them from my contract;
namely, the City of Chicago, in the State of Illinois, the City of
Omaha, in the State of Nebraska, and the County of Allegheny, in the
State of Pennsylvania, this last named territory including the City of
Pittsburgh.
This exception of territory was to my advantage as I was able to sell
rights for the patents I owned without extra expense and the money
obtained belonged entirely to me, while any rights sold in the territory
covered by the pooling agreement had to be divided -- 60% to the National
Company and 40% to me. The company maintained an office at 140 Nassau
Street, New York, with the office of Blake, Moffitt & Towne of San
Francisco, and that was the headquarters of all our business. James W.
Towne was the resident partner of that firm of paper merchants. I was
charged with 40% of the expenses of the National Company's office and,
in theory, my part was only to give consent to their acts in making
sales but as a matter of fact, I did a large part of the work of
negotiating sales and the functions of the parties provided for in the
contract were reversed. Charles E. Parsons, whose father was an old
friend of Joseph Britton, of the Clay Street Company, was then secretary
of the National Company and Henry L. Davis of San Francisco, its
president. Parsons did most of the work under my direction and when a
matter had been arranged, it was submitted to the San Francisco folks,
that was: Hallidie, Britton, Davis and Moffitt, these four controlled
the National Company at this time. Parsons' interest was only a salaried
one but he took as faithful an interest in the success of the business
as if it was entirely his own. However, he always looked upon them as
his employers and not me (which was the true fact of the case), we
always got along well together and understood each other perfectly.
After the company went out of business, Parsons was employed for several
years on the staff of the New York Sun and I think was so
employed up to about the time of his death, which I think was about
1916.
I received over $20,000.00 royalties on my own patents in the above
named excepted territories where the rights of the National Company had
already been sold before their contract with me, $10,000.00 of which was
paid to me by Charles T. Yerkes of Chicago.
For its size, Kansas City, Missouri, was the most profitable
territory for us in our cable patent business, and St. Louis next. I
went to Kansas City in the spring of 1886. The Kansas City Cable
Railroad Company's road, leading over the bluff and on a trestle down to
the railroad depot, had been started but they were having much trouble
by their grip not having power enough to prevent slipping on the cable
and they were very willing to accept help in modifying their appliances
and we sold them a general license. Robert Gillham was the chief
engineer, later he was badly injured by a grip dropping on his head.
Next we sold a license to the Metropolitan Company and finally sold the
territory of all the remaining part of the city for $40,000.00.
The Chicago City Railroad, on State and other streets there, had been
constructed and opened for business in 1882 under the management of
C. B. Holmes, its president. The master mechanic of cable appliances in
building that road was Asa E. Hovey, known as "Yank" of San Francisco,
and who occupied the same position in the building of the Sutter Street
road, for Casebolt. During one of Mr. Holmes' visits to San Francisco,
he became convinced that the cable system was what they needed on his
road so he hired Hovey to go to Chicago and he left here in the spring
of 1881 and made his home there permanently.
As soon as the Chicago company decided to build cable roads, they
made some kind of an arrangement for their patents, but they followed my
general plan of concrete and metal ribs as I had recommended and shown
Mr. Holmes in the California Street road. I had become well acquainted
with him on his visits here and I knew he had a large influence with
street railroad people all over the United States and I wanted his help
and influence with me in the sale of my patents in the east, so I told
him I would give him a license to use all my patents on his road for the
nominal consideration of $1.00. At that time my rights were principally
in the several inventions as the patents had not been issued and some of
them not applied for, however he was glad to get from me a blanket
license for present and future inventions of mine relating to cable
railroads and I was willing to give it for his future influence in my
favor. However, he made out a sight draft on Chicago in my favor and
asked me to endorse it over to him which I did and he took it along with
him. He said, "You don't want to say you gave me this for nothing and in
this way I really paid you $4000.00 and you gave it back to me." He
always did whatever he could for me and I frequently stayed with him at
his home on Prairie Avenue in Chicago.
I made a trip from San Francisco to Chicago in April, 1882, about the
time the State Street line of that road was started. I was only away
from San Francisco thirteen days. The Chicago Cable railroads, like the
Market Street and other cable roads in San Francisco, were built
following my plan first used on California Street from Kearny to
Fillmore Streets in 1877. The Market Street construction work was
started early in 1881, but there was a year's delay in making final
arrangements so the concrete work for the Chicago South Side road was
one year ahead of the principal part of the Market Street construction.
Large quantities of Portland cement were used on each job. I never knew
how much was used in the Chicago work, but I believe the San Francisco
work was far more economically handled than the Chicago. However, this
Chicago and Kansas City concrete work greatly advanced the introduction
of Portland cement concrete into all kinds of building construction.
Hovey and Holmes' knowledge of concrete was derived almost entirely from
my experience and information.
In trying to sell our cable railroad patents to the railroad
president and managers I was generally met with the statement, "Our
lawyers have examined your patents and tell us they could probably be
beaten in the courts, however, if by buying the rights to use them we
could get the benefit of your experience, it might justify us in paying
a moderate price for them." While some of them claimed to have valuable
patents of their own and wanted to be taken in, we could not do that, so
in such cases we generally commenced suits, but on the whole our law
business was not successful. One result of those eight years of
experience was to give me a wide acquaintance with the owners and
managers of the street car business throughout the United States,
amongst them was Tom Johnson, later Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio.
CHAPTER 9.
WATCHING THE PROGRESS OF ELECTRIC ROADS.
At the same time this cable railroad business was going on our
interests required us to watch closely the progress made by the
experiments with the various kinds of electric roads everywhere. I must
confess that at this time I did not believe in the ultimate success of
the electric roads, but knew there was a popular belief by the public
that electricity was the coming motive power, they not knowing that
electricity was only a means of transmitting power, generated by a steam
engine at the power house, to the several cars along the road, the same
as we did by the traveling cable. A large number of well informed people
believed that the future electric road was to be developed out of the
underground tube used by the cable roads, and that the moving cable was
to be replaced by an electric conductor stationary in the said tube, and
this idea was finally carried out in some cases, as on Seventh Street in
Washington, D. C.
It was quite a generally accepted theory that an overhead conductor
and trolley would not be permitted in the streets of large cities, and
that furthermore its use would be so impeded by snow and ice of a
northern winter as to make its use impractical. All of this we now know
was a delusion and the broomstick trolley is the standard street car
construction all over the United States. But on the other hand its
cheapness of construction in first cost and operation as compared with
cable roads was also a popular delusion which has cost the investors in
electric roads millions of dollars. One of the first electric roads I
ever saw was only five or six blocks long in Minneapolis and was a
genuine trolley; that is, a little car or truck was towed along on top
of the conductor wire; that was before the spring broomstick had been
invented. I also saw a third rail conductor in operation in Baltimore,
but it was very crude. What I consider the first electric railroad in
the United States of the trolley type that has survived and is the
standard of today, was the
Sprague Road of Richmond, Virginia. They had
great trouble at the start from burning out of motors, and other
electric apparatus; some of the time being able to run but four out of
eighteen cars. I think that was about 1890.
During these several years I considered San Francisco as my home, but
traveled around. Was in New York quite a percentage of the time and at
my old home in Williston, Vermont, considerably, but always in touch
with Charles E. Parsons, at the office in New York.
The outcome of our suit against the Third Avenue Railroad Company of
New York, on my concrete and metal tube construction patent No. 262126,
dated August 1, 1882, on an application filed by me September 3, 1881,
was a great disappointment to me.
This suit was brought by me July 12, 1886, in the joint interest of
myself and the National Cable Railway Company, in the Circuit Court for
the Southern District of New York. The case was decided by Judge Wallace
against me in that court, on the plea that the invention had been in
public use on the California Street road in San Francisco for more than
two years before I made the application for the patent, and that
decision was sustained on appeal by us to the Supreme Court of the
United States and the patent declared void for that reason. This last
named decision was November 21, 1892. I felt then—and do now—that my use
on California Street was an experimental use and was clearly so within
the principles laid down by the same court in Nicholson pavement case,
97 United States, p. 126. The United States Supreme Court as constituted
in 1892, was as follows:
Melville W. Fuller, Chief Justice; Steven J. Field, John M. Har?an,
Horace Gray, Samuel Blatchford, L. Q. C. L?mar, David J. Brewer, Henry
B. Brown and George Shiras, Jr., Associate Justices; James H. McKinney,
clerk, and John M. Wright, was marshal. All the above named members of
the court are now dead and I believe all the attorneys who took part in
the case are also dead, which seems to me rather remarkable and if the
patent in controversy had been sustained it also would have died a
natural death, as the life term of a patent is only seventeen years, the
invention then becoming public property.
However, by reason of this invention being patented the contest over
its validity served to advertise it and inform the public as to its
utility, and taken as a whole I received a fair compensation for my
inventions.
CHAPTER 10.
REORGANIZATION OF THE STREET RAILROADS IN SAN FRANCISCO, THEIR STOCKS AND BONDS.
Soon after the construction of the Market Street cable railroad in
San Francisco, the Omnibus and Powell Street companies converted their
roads from horse to cable; they too being financed by bond issues.
However they did not feel entirely confident of future dividends on the
stock after paying the bond interest, so a consolidation was brought
about by which they became merged in a new company, called the " Market
Street Railway," which company guaranteed the payment, principal and
interest, of the outstanding bonds of the constituent companies and each
took stock in the new company according to an agreed scale, "quantum
meruit," the guarantee of the bonds of each being taken into
consideration. This was about November, 1893. The total number of shares
of the new Market Street Railway Company was 187,500; of this 8580 were
not issued leaving 178,920 shares to be divided among the owners of the
constituent companies.
The shares apportioned to the companies already controlled
by the Market Street owners were as follows:
To the Market Street Cable Ry. Co. 115,157 shares
To the Market Street & Fairmont Co. 4,812 "
To the City Railway Company 3,684 "
To the Potrero & Bay View Ry. Co. 2,210 "
To the Southern Heights R. R. Co. 276
To the Park & Ocean R. R. Co. 2,878
To the Ocean Beach R. R. Co. 818
and to the Central Railroad Company 3,053
making a total of 132,888 "
which were distributed to the Stanford et al. interests; they having previously acquired the whole capital stock of the above mentioned companies. The outstanding bonds guaranteed were as follows :
Market Street Cable Railway Company $3,000,000.
Omnibus Cable Railway Co. 2,000,000.
Ferry & Cliff Railroad 650,000.
Powell Street Railway 700,000.
Park & Cliff Railroad 350,000.
Park & Ocean (already guaranteed) 250,000.
Second mortgage on Omnibus Cable Ry. Co. 15,000.
About July, 1894, the Metropolitan Electric Road was purchased and
paid for with 7,250 shares of the treasury stock of the Market Street
Company. The Metropolitan commenced operating from the corner of Powell,
on Eddy Street to Hyde Street; to O'Farrell Street; to Scott Street ; to
Fell Street ; to Baker Street ; to Page Street; to Clayton Street; to
Waller Street; to Cole Street; thence on Cole Street to the power house
at Carl and Willard Streets.
This road commenced operating from Powell Street to the Carl Street
power house in the fall of 1892. The market value of the new Market
Street Railway Company's stock on February 1, 1894, was $32.00 per
share, and I think Martin & Ballard who received their stock for their
Powell Street interests sold out at this price. Later all the
outstanding stock was bought in by Henry E. Huntington at about $85.00
per share, and the whole capital stock sold including the Central
Pacific people's interests, at $100.00 to Brown Bros., bankers, for
eastern parties. Sutter Street and San Mateo electric roads were also
purchased about the same time by the same parties. The ultimate purpose
of the purchase at that time was to convert the entire Market Street
system to trolley road, but it was necessary to obtain a modification of
the franchise to do so. The notice of consolidation and amalgamation of
the several companies into the Market Street Railway was dated October
14, 1893, and signed by J. L. Willcutt, secretary.
The sale of the Market Street consolidated and the Sutter Street and
San Mateo roads above mentioned, was about the first of the year 1902.
Tirey L. Ford, who had been attorney general of this state, was the
agent here for the eastern purchasers. As soon as the sale had been
arranged a corporation was formed under the laws of the State of New
Jersey, to take the title. The bonded indebtedness of the roads so
purchased, amounting to about $13,000,000, remained unpaid, but the
interest was paid from the earnings of the roads as it became due. Later
a California corporation was formed by the eastern parties, called "The
United Railroads of San Francisco" and the title passed to it, with San
Francisco men as dummy directors.
The San Mateo electric road, above mentioned, was the first electric
road operated in San Francisco; the franchise for it was granted to
Behrend Joost and others, December 16,1890, and it was known as the
Joost Road. It ran from the waterfront along Harrison and Bryant Streets
to Fourteenth Street; along Fourteenth Street to Guerrero Street; along
Guerrero Street to San Jos? Avenue; out San Jos? to Chenery Street, and
along the old San Jos? road to the county line and the cemeteries, and
was finally extended to San Bruno, Millbrae, Burlingame and San Mateo.
On November 16, 1891, the holders of the franchise made affidavit that
more than $50,000 had been expended on construction. The brick power
house was just north of the Southern Pacific tracks about where Joost
Avenue comes into the old San Jos? road about where Thirty-sixth Street
would be if the numbered streets had continued. I think this was built
during the year 1892, and put in operation that fall. Mr. Joost had made
some easy money out of contracts under the French r?gime on the Panama
Canal and had faith that electric roads were the coming thing. However,
he had to sell out his interest for what he could get, taking a very
serious loss, and John D. Spreckels & Brother became the owners of the
road, which they largely reconstructed, and I think they were glad to
sell for what the property had cost them.
The Geary Street, Park and Ocean Railroad had been constructed in
1880, as a cable railroad from Kearny Street to Central Avenue, of a
rather temporary structure, and from there on along Geary Street to
First Avenue, and along it to Golden Gate Park, as a motor road,
operated by steam dummies. The road was 5 feet gauge, the usual horse
car gauge, while the Market Street system was of the standard gauge for
steam roads, that is 4 feet, eight and a half inches. Soon after the
cable system was built the controlling interest in the Geary Street
stock was purchased by the Market Street owners, but they did not get
the whole. The stock owned by Robert F. Morrow and Adam Grant was not
included in the sale. I think the purpose of the purchase of the control
of the Geary Street road was to make it a branch of the Market Street
cable system, like the McAllister and Hayes Street branches, however it
was decided to reconstruct the road with ribs and concrete, change the
gauge to make it like the Market Street road and change the style of car
and grip to the same as used on the Market Street system. This was done
during the year 1892 ; George W. Douglas was in charge of the mechanical
part of the work and A. B. Southard, the civil engineering. I acted as
consulting engineer. I obtained three additional lots on First Avenue,
adjoining the fifty vara lot at the northwest corner of Geary Street and
First Avenue, and a large brick car house was constructed on this lot.
The original power plant at the northeast corner of Buchanan and Geary
Streets built in the year 1880, was continued in use; large cotton ropes
being used for the connection of the engine with the driving gears
instead of gears; this method being noiseless. A. W. Barron was
superintendent of operation. The cars were kept running during the
reconstruction and the terminal just below Kearny Street was changed
from a switching arrangement to a double track turn-table, like that
used on Market Street at East Street. This turn-table was opposite the
Chronicle office, and M. H. de Young brought suit to have it
removed, as a nuisance, but failed and it remained there as long as the
road was operated by cable.
At the time of the earthquake and fire, April 18, 1906, the road was
damaged, principally by the expansion of rails and slot by the heat of
the burning buildings along the streets ; the chimney was also cracked
and the power house damaged by the quake. However this damage was
repaired by the renewal of a few slot bars and rails and some repairs at
the power house and the road commenced operation again in the early
summer of 1906.
By an oversight the management of this road did not apply for or get
a new franchise for a term of fifty years, as could have been done at
the time this long term franchise was granted to the other company. The
term of the franchise then in use had expired. The company obtained a
temporary permit to continue operation by paying the city first 10 per
cent, and later 5 per cent, of its earnings. This was preceded by
litigation by which the company tried to obtain a renewal of the
franchise, but failed, and they were forced to abandon to the city all
structures in the public streets, and they were destroyed and sold as
junk when the city took possession and constructed the municipal trolley
electric over the same route. The term of the franchise under which the
Geary Street cable road was constructed, expired November 6, 1903, but
the operation had continued under temporary arrangements from that time
on. On April 19, 1912, a contract was let by the city to P. H. Mahoney,
to construct the trolley municipal road from Kearny Street to Fifth
Avenue, and the cable railroad was broken up by a battering ram dropped
like a piledriver, and on December 28, 1912, the first electric car ran
over the line and the operation of the municipal system commenced from
Kearny Street westward; Mayor Rolph ran the first car over the new road.
The roadbed of the Geary Street road which was destroyed to make way for
the trolley was one of the best ever constructed and for sometime it was
contemplated using it as an underground electric road, but all those
plans were finally abandoned, the existing road destroyed and was a
total loss, and the standard electric trolley street car line
constructed, which was the best thing to do in view of future expansions
of the municipal system.
During the year 1894 the Mission Street line of the Market Street
Railway Company had been reconstructed as a trolley line from the
Oakland Ferry to Twenty-ninth Street, and from that time that appeared
to be the coming style of construction, notwithstanding its many
shortcomings.
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