Watts Car House
Pacific Electric Watts Car House is shown hosting the maintenance of Pacific Electric switcher no. 1621 and Southern Pacific Electro-Motive diesel switcher no. 4618 circa 1955.
Jack Finn Collection
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SP 4618 got around–I have a photo of it with a short train on the Duarte Branch about to cross Santa Anita Wash in Arcadia. It was taken in 1959–when this part of the PE had only about two years left. For this job, 4618 may have been based in Baldwin Park.
Testimony to the great guys working the “shops” during those days after Torrance. Couldn’t have been easy keeping the rolling stock doing just that. . . .
I used up too much of my misspent youth at the Watts Car House. The facility was surprising well equipped. with a large lathe, a milling machine, air brake test equipment and so forth. I was down there on Friday, August 13, 1965, when the first Watts Riot started. I looked over along 103rd, and thinking “one hell of a fire” and going home.
Well Dave, I would say your time was well spent given the contributions you have made in preservation efforts and furthering our
knowledge of all things PE. Thank you!
We called it the watts cow barn in the early sixties when they were pulling the electric wires down.