Eureka Southern

Company History: The EUKA was born in 1981 when Bryan Whipple bought the northern portion of Southern Pacific’s Northwestern Pacific subsidiary between Eureka and Willits, California with branches to Carlotta and Fairhaven. Eureka Southern began operation in 1984 with four ex-Conrail GP38’s (the units with the strange notches in the cab were built for Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines and featured dual control stands in the cab.)

In addition to serving the forest products industry, EUKA ran excursion trains which they called the North Coast Daylight between 1987 and 1990 but this operation was curtailed by deteriorating track conditions. In 1988, EUKA bought the Arcata & Mad River Railroad which connected near the north end at Korbelex. A&MR had been closed for a couple of years due to on-again-off-again service from their only connection, the Eureka Southern.

The final straw for the Eureka Southern was landslides caused by the 1991 Loma Prieta Earthquake that rocked Northern California. The line through the scenic Eel River Canyon was, for all intents and purposes, destroyed. The following year, the line was sold to the North Coast Railroad Authority who later resumed operation on the remaining portion under the name North Coast Railroad.

Successor/Parent History: The NCRR was established in 1992 after a California agency took control of Southern Pacific’s former Northwestern Pacific subsidiary, saving it from abandonment. The NCRR was established to operate the north end of the line from Willits to Eureka that had previously been operated by the failed Eureka Southern. This operation lasted only until 1995 when severe flooding in the Eel River Canyon destroyed much of the railroad.

Brief History: The U.S. is a country of 50 states covering a vast swath of North America, with Alaska in the northwest and Hawaii extending the nation’s presence into the Pacific Ocean. Major Atlantic Coast cities are New York, a global finance and culture center, and capital Washington, DC. Midwestern metropolis Chicago is known for influential architecture and on the west coast, Los Angeles' Hollywood is famed for filmmaking.