DVD California’s North Coast Logging Railroads • 70 mins • colour and B&W • dubbed sound

In 1854, the first railroad in the western U.S. was built to haul logs from northern California's vast stands of coastal redwoods to the tideland. For the next century, railroads played a vital role in a thriving lumber industry.

This DVD features operations of the Caspar, Union, Holmes-Eureka, Northern Redwood, Simpson Redwood, Hammond, Dolbeer and Carson, and Pacific Lumber Companies and their railroads. Also shown are the Arcata and Mad River and the Northwestern Pacific Railroads which largely connected the logging railroads.
Outstanding, mostly color footage has been assembled by film archivist Don Olsen to provide a fascinating view of steam-era logging, from 1904 to 1954. From felling timber to shipping the lumber, this film provides a remarkable fifty year record of northern California's dominant coastal industry. Interviews with eminent author/historian Ted Wurm and Henry Sorensen highlight the action, and the tape concludes with the story of Henry's retrieval and restoration of Mattole Lumber Company's 0-4-0T No. 1. Another highly enjoyable mainly logging film - there is also some standard gauge, common-carrier, action.