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Volume 076-4 - October 2022 (6 pages)
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Page: of 6
NCHS Bulletin October 2022
The Bear River Bridge on the Nevada
County Narrow Gauge Railroad, which
was the highest railroad bridge in the state.
Some of the railroad’s rolling stock is
preserved at the Nevada County Narrow
Gauge Railroad & Transportation Museum.
Courtesy Searls Historical Library.
project, which they called the Central Pacific Railroad
of California. James Bailey, a friend of Judah, told
Leland Stanford that Judah had a feasible route for a
railroad across the Sierras, and urged Stanford to meet
with Judah. In early 1861, Marsh, Judah and Strong
met with Collis P. Huntington, Leland Stanford, Mark
Hopkins and Charles Crocker to obtain financial backing. Papers were filed to incorporate the new company,
and on April 30, 1861, the eight of them, along with
Lucius Anson Booth, became the first board of directors of the Central Pacific Railroad. Marsh was one of
the initial investors and owned 50 shares, about 4% of
the new company (‘The percentage changed as more
shares were sold), @ndnotes 31-37)
In 1862, Marsh, Judah, Huntington and Congressman
Aaron Sargent explored possible railroad routes over
the Sierra Nevada, including visiting the Donner cabins, Fuller’s crossing on the Truckee River, and Washoe, Long and Sierra Valleys. Later, Marsh, Judah and
Huntington also explored a possible route along the
Middle Fork of the Feather River. nants 35-9)
On May 10, 1869, the Central Pacific Railroad, which
was building east from Sacramento, California, met the
Union Pacific Railroad, which was building west from
Council Bluffs, Iowa, at Promontory Summit, Utah.
This completed the first transcontinental railroad. Of
the members of the Central Pacific Railroad’s board
of directors, only Leland Stanford and Charles Marsh
attended the Gold Spike ceremony.@™"s 4°)
Founder of the Nevada County
Narrow Gauge Railroad
In 1874, Marsh was one of the organizers of and investors in the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad. ‘This
line connected Nevada City, California with the Central
Pacific at Colfax, California. Marsh was active in both the
Masons and Odd Fellows, and held the highest offices
in the state of those organizations. In April 1876, he was
thrown from a carriage in San Francisco and died of his
injuries. His funeral, attended by over 1,000 people, was
one of the largest in memory. 47° 49-4)
oe ee
Charles Marsh House, 123 Nevada St., Nevada City, California. In
November 1853, Marsh was in such demand as a surveyor that when he
returned to his office, someone would ring a bell to announce that fact to
people anxiously waiting for surveys. Courtesy of the author.
Dana Parker is a first-time author for the
Bulletin. Prior to retirement Dana worked
for the Santa Fe Railway and Pacific Harbor
Line. For the past 20 years, Dana has also
worked at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena
Park, CA where he gives educational tours
of its full-scale replica of Independence Hall
and tours on the science of roller coasters.
He occasionally works as a blacksmith,
school master, and docent in the museum
and as a conductor on the Ghost Town &
Calico Railroad. Dana has written books
and articles for Wikipedia (in which the
Marsh article was first published), newspapers and magazines. Thank you, Dana.
Dana asked that we include his appreciation
for the research assistance provided by Pat
Chesnut. Also for Pat’s connecting him with
Dom Lindars whose book, The Ditches of
Nevada City, is forthcoming in 2003, and
who was most helpful. Society member
Chuck Spinks also contacted Dana with
additional information and suggestions.
Endnotes
1. Lindars, Dom. Manuscript, The Ditches of Nevada City, Chapter 24, Stories of Fire and Ice, anticipated publication date:
Spring 2023.
2. Comstock, David Allan. “Charles Marsh: Our Neglected Pioneer-Genius,” Nevada County Historical Society Bulletin, p. 9,
Volume 50, No. 2, April 1996.
3. “Railroad Route Discovered,” The Nevada Journal, November
9, 1860, p. 2, Nevada City, California.
4. “The Other Ox,” The Sacramento Bee, p. 2, February 9, 1874,
Sacramento, California.
5. “Death of a Notable Mason,” Oakland Tribune, p. 3, April 29,
1876, Oakland, California.
6. Papers compiled by David Comstock, and The Christine
Freeman Directory, Searls Historical Library, Nevada City,
California.