San Fernando (Pacific Electric)

The San Fernando Line was a part of the Pacific Electric Railway system in Los Angeles County, California. It was designed to increase the reach of public transportation from the Downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood into the San Fernando Valley, to support land speculation and development expanding Los Angeles.

San Fernando
Overview
Type	Light rail
System	Pacific Electric
Locale	Southern California
Termini	Downtown Los Angeles San Fernando, California
Stations	36
Operation
Opened	1911
Closed	1952
Owner	Southern Pacific Railroad
Operator(s)	Pacific Electric
Rolling stock	PE 5050 Class PCC Cars (last used)
Technical
Line length	27.5 miles
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	Overhead lines
Route map San Fernando San Fernando Mission Wheeler Hickson Plummer Misslanco Mission Acres Pacoima Wash Midway Park Wyondotte Whitsert Southern Pacific RR Rosita Amherst Owensmouth North Sherman Way Van Nuys terminus after 1938 Whitley Castro Cortez Kester Junction Tujunga Wash Garnsey Sadler Eucalyptus North Hollywood Hoffman Los Nogales Los Angeles River Universal City Oak Crest Barham Boulevard Hollywood Park Dusky Glen Cahuenga Pass US 101 Beverly Hills Sherman Highland Avenue Colegrove Virgil Avenue Beverly Hills US 101 1st Street Toluca Substation and Yard Hollywood Subway I-110 / SR 110 (Harbor Freeway) Subway Terminal

Southern San Fernando Valley line

In 1911–1912, a 20 miles (32 km) interurban electric railway was built from Lankershim (present day North Hollywood), the terminus of an existing line from over the Cahuenga Pass from Hollywood, westward through the entire southern San Fernando Valley property of the Los Angeles Suburban Homes Company syndicate, to promote and support small farm and residential property sales. The syndicate was led by Harry Chandler, with partners General Moses Sherman, Isaac Van Nuys, Hobart Johnstone Whitley, and James Boon Lankershim. The project was initiated in anticipation of the Los Angeles aqueduct opening in 1913, which would bring water for residential and irrigated agricultural development in the syndicate's San Fernando Valley holdings (and citywide). The syndicate is the Los Angeles land speculation group dramatized in the movie Chinatown.

The partner General Moses Sherman directed the Los Angeles Pacific Railroad electric railway line's construction. It ran from Lankershim to the three new towns the syndicate's partner Hobart Johnstone Whitley had planned for the valley, Van Nuys, Marion (present day Reseda), and Owensmouth (present day Canoga Park and West Hills). The tracks ran in the middle of Sherman Way, a broad new 'lavishly landscaped' and paved avenue to the Owensmouth terminus.

1920 Sherman Way in Owensmouth, with Los Angeles Pacific Railroad lines

Northern San Fernando Valley spur

In addition, the San Fernando Mission Land Company of Charles Maclay and George K. Porter, which owned much of the northern San Fernando Valley (north of Roscoe Boulevard), built an electric railway spur line north from Van Nuys, to connect their undeveloped land and the City of San Fernando with the Pacific Electric system. From San Fernando, the southbound route followed Brand Boulevard, Sepulveda Boulevard, Parthenia Place, and then Van Nuys Boulevard from present day Panorama City to Van Nuys. Remnants of the right of way include center medians on Brand Boulevard, and roundabouts at the Parthenia Place and Sherman Circle/Van Nuys Boulevard turns.

Station	Major Connections	Date Opened	Date Closed	City
San Fernando
San Fernando		1902	1938	San Fernando
Van Nuys	Owensmouth	1902	1952	Van Nuys
Lankershim	Owensmouth	1902	1952	North Hollywood
Highland Avenue	San Fernando, Sherman, Venice via Hollywood	1902	1955	Los Angeles
Colegrove	San Fernando, Sherman, Venice via Hollywood	1902	1955
Virgil Avenue	San Fernando, Sherman, Venice via Hollywood, Western and Franklin Avenue	1902	1955
Sanborn Junction	Beverly Hills, San Fernando, Sherman, Venice via Hollywood, Western and Franklin Avenue	1902	1955
Subway Terminal Building	Beverly Hills, Echo Park Avenue, Glendale-Burbank, Owensmouth, Redondo Beach via Playa del Rey, Sawtelle, Sherman, Venice Short Line, Venice via Hollywood, Western and Franklin Avenue, Westgate	1925	1961

See also

• Owensmouth (Pacific Electric)
• History of the San Fernando Valley to 1915
• Streetcar suburb
• Streetcars in North America
• List of California railroads
• History of rail transportation in California

References

• Electric Railway Heritage Association
• Electric Railway Heritage Association, San Fernando Valley Line

First Red Car over to North Hollywood, December 16, 1911