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Private company

San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad

Short lived railroad from Stockton to Bakersfield (1895-1898)

The San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad was a California rail line between Stockton and Bakersfield constructed in the late 1890s and very shortly thereafter purchased by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad and became their Valley Division. The impetus for building the line was the monopoly position of the Southern Pacific Railroad, it being thought that a competitor would lower the prices being charged to farmers to ship their crops to San Francisco.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

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Map of San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Ry. and Atchison lines in California (13962049896)
Photo: Norman B. Leventhal Map Center at the BPL, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

The San Francisco and San Joaquin Valley Railroad was a California rail line between Stockton and Bakersfield constructed in the late 1890s and very shortly thereafter purchased by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad and became their Valley Division. The impetus for building the line was the monopoly position of the Southern Pacific Railroad, it being thought that a competitor would lower the prices being charged to farmers to ship their crops to San Francisco.2

Sources

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