Arcata and Mad River Rail Road Company

Humboldt County · Railroad Depot, Blue Lake · location approximate

Incorporated December 15, 1854, as the Union Plank Walk, Rail Track, and Wharf Company, the Arcata and Mad River Rail Road is the oldest line on the north coast. Originally using a horse-drawn car, the railroad served as a link between Humboldt Bay and the Trinity River mines. Later, locomotives were added as the line grew to serve the redwood industry.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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