The Friends of the Sierra Railroad Collection, 1897-2004

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Summary

Abstract:
The Friends of the Sierra Railroad (FSR) Collection contains a variety of documents, photographs, and correspondence related to the activities of the FSR from its founding in the 1980s to 2004. Among the documents are financial and legal papers, as well as internal memos sent by the FSR to its members, as well as newsletters and publications related to rail history. The photographs cover numerous rail excursions taken by FSR members. Finally, there are the personal papers of Bruce Cassasa, the co-founder and vice president of the FSR.
Extent:
11 Linear Feet 11 record cartons
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Friends of the Sierra Railroad Collection, MS 939, California State Railroad Museum Library & Archive, Sacramento, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The Friends of the Sierra Railroad (FSR) Collection contains a variety of documents, photographs, and correspondence related to the activities of the FSR from its founding in the 1980s to 2004. Among the documents are financial and legal papers, as well as internal memos sent by the FSR to its members, as well as newsletters and publications related to rail history. The photographs cover numerous rail excursions taken by FSR members. Finally, there are the personal papers of Bruce Cassasa, the co-founder and vice president of the FSR.

Biographical / historical:

The Friends of the Sierra Railroad (FSR) organization was founded in 1980 by Bruce Cassasa and his father Stanley with the goal of saving the Sierra Railway's track and its maintenance facility, known as "Railtown", located in Jamestown, California. Bruce Cassasa, who was in prison as the time, typed hundreds of letters to state legislatures in an effort to convince them and the California Department of Parks and Recreation to buy the land, facilities, and equipment offered for sale by the Sierra Railway in order to establish a state historic park. These efforts finally paid off with the opening of the Railtown 1897 State Historic Park in 1983. After this, Cassasa and the FSR continued to work at preserving as much of the original Sierra Rail line as possible, with the ultimate goal of restoring steam rail service to Tuolumne, and passenger services to Oakdale. Railtown was slated for closure by the state in 2008 and 2012, however both times this was prevented through the efforts of the FSR and other local organizations.

While they work at preservation, the organization also acts as a kind of social club, bringing members together on a regular basis for rail excursions and events to various locations along the old Sierra rail lines. Cassasa participated in all of these efforts in one form or another as the executive vice president of the organization until his death in 2022.

Acquisition information:
Gift of Tom Bullock, 2023
Arrangement:

The files in the collection have been separated into eight series and are arranged alphabetically within those series.

SYSTEM OF ARRANGEMENT

The Files of the Friends of the Sierra Railroad Collection are arranged into the following series.

Series 1. Correspondence

Series 2. Friends of the Sierra Railroad Documents and Membership Rosters

Series 3. Publications and Newsletters

Series 4. Financial Documents

Series 5. Legal Documents

Series 6. Tuolumne Parks and Recreation District Documents

Series 7. Photographs

Series 8. Bruce W. Cassasa Personal Papers

Physical location:
Statewide Museum Collection Center. Boxes 1-3, I2 210 P8. Boxes 4-6, Is 210 P9. Boxes 7-9, I2 210 P10. Boxes 10-11, I2 210 P11.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Indexed terms

Subjects:
Sierra Railroad Company

Access and use

Restrictions:

Restrictions apply. Contact library staff for details.

Terms of access:

Copyright has not been assigned to the California State Railroad Museum. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the CSRM Library & Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the CSRM as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Friends of the Sierra Railroad Collection, MS 939, California State Railroad Museum Library & Archive, Sacramento, California.

Location of this collection:
111 I Street
Sacramento, CA 95814, US
Contact:
(916) 323-8073
Library.CSRM@parks.ca.gov
Website