California, Here I Come!

It is hard to tell from the picture on the front of this post card, but I think the locomotive is a "Ten Wheel" or 4-6-0 wheel configuration style of engine. The first of this style of locomotive was built in 1847 for the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad by the Norris Brothers. This locomotive is parked in front of the new Southern Pacific depot in Santa Barbara, California. The following information can be found at https://www.independent.com/2017/03/23/southern-pacific-railroad-station-209-state-street/ After the Southern Pacific Railroad completed the Coast Line in 1901, making it possible for passengers to travel uninterrupted from Los Angeles to San Francisco, rail excursions became popular. The increased rail traffic, however, necessitated larger facilities in Santa Barbara. When the railroad realigned the local tracks in 1905, it also built a new passenger depot, the fourth to be constructed in the city since 1887, when the railroad first arrived. A local architect, Francis W. Wilson, active here from the 1890s to the early years of the 20th century, was engaged to do the new building. The Mission Revival style was selected so that the depot would “conform in general style to the Mission Architecture so appropriate and so popular in Southern California.” The station was sited to allow passengers and their escorts easy arrival and departure by way of State or Chapala streets.

The back of the post card only tells me that it was published between 1907 and 1915; it is from the Divided Back era of post cards. It is representative of the fact that the United States Postal Service finally allowed more than only the address on the back of the picture. You can see that there is a reminder that the message goes on the left and the address is to be written on the right-hand side of the back of the post card. I have looked in many places to see if there is any history on the publisher, California Sales Co. out of San Francisco. So far nothing!!!

I do know that it was published to promote the Southern Pacific Railroad. The theme "ON THE ROAD OF A THOUSAND WONDERS" was used by the Southern Pacific on many, many post cards.