Minarets and Western Railway
Encyclopedia
The Minarets and Western Railway was a Class II
common carrier
that operated in Fresno County, California, from 1921 - 1933. The railway was owned by the Sugar Pine Lumber Company and was built the same year the lumber company was incorporated so that it could haul timber from the forest near Minarets (northeast of Friant
) to its sawmill
at Pinedale (near Fresno). The southern portion of the line was operated with joint trackage rights with Southern Pacific.
During the Great Depression
, in 1933 the lumber company went bankrupt. The track north of Friant was abandoned and the Pinedale Branch was bought by Southern Pacific, where it was later known as the Pinedale Spur of the Clovis Branch. Southern Pacific later sold the spur and Clovis Branch to the San Joaquin Valley Railroad
(SJVR). SJVR abandoned the line in the 1990s and today the Pinedale Spur is preserved as the Fresno-Clovis Rail Trail.
Class II
Class II may refer to:*Class II appliance*Class II bacteriocin*Class II cabinet*Class II gene*Class II PI 3-kinases*Class II railroad*Class II star*MHC class II...
common carrier
Common carrier
A common carrier in common-law countries is a person or company that transports goods or people for any person or company and that is responsible for any possible loss of the goods during transport...
that operated in Fresno County, California, from 1921 - 1933. The railway was owned by the Sugar Pine Lumber Company and was built the same year the lumber company was incorporated so that it could haul timber from the forest near Minarets (northeast of Friant
Friant
Friant can mean either*Louis Friant, French general during the Napoleonic Wars*Friant, California, a town in the United States...
) to its sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
at Pinedale (near Fresno). The southern portion of the line was operated with joint trackage rights with Southern Pacific.
During the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, in 1933 the lumber company went bankrupt. The track north of Friant was abandoned and the Pinedale Branch was bought by Southern Pacific, where it was later known as the Pinedale Spur of the Clovis Branch. Southern Pacific later sold the spur and Clovis Branch to the San Joaquin Valley Railroad
San Joaquin Valley Railroad
The San Joaquin Valley Railroad is one of several short line railroad companies and is part of the Sunset Division of RailAmerica. It operates about of track primarily on several lines in California's Central Valley/San Joaquin Valley outside of Fresno, California and Bakersfield, California...
(SJVR). SJVR abandoned the line in the 1990s and today the Pinedale Spur is preserved as the Fresno-Clovis Rail Trail.