Today the promise of high-speed rail in California remains just that - a promise for the future. But the idea of connecting valley cities with an all-electric train, isn’t new. It actually happened, a century ago. Today on KVPR's Central Valley Roots, the story of the Visalia Electric Railroad.
The first electric trains went into commercial service in Germany in the 1880s. About 10 years later Visalia newspaper editor Ben Maddox began promoting a plan to build just such a line in Tulare County. His vision was to link Visalia to communities along the foothills to the east, with an interurban electric railway.
In 1904, his dream became a reality. The line would be owned by the Southern Pacific Railroad, and would be powered by a new hydroelectric plant on the Kaweah River. Visalia Electric would offer both passenger and freight service. You could ride from Visalia to places like Farmerville, Exeter, Lemon Cove and Elderwood.
Passenger service ended in 1924, but electric freight service continued until 1944. Visalia Electric stuck around with non-electric freight service that continued until 1992. Today you’ll find a mural celebrating one of the Visalia Electric trains in downtown Exeter, not far from where they used to run.
