This collection includes records of the Western Pacific Railroad's Western Division and some personal papers collected by Virgil C. Staff.

Virgil Clinton Staff was born on April 2, 1928 in Nevada, Iowa. As a child he watched Chicago & North Western trains coming through town. He graduated from Atlantic Union College in South Lancaster, Massachusetts and the University of California in Berkeley. A high school history teacher, Mr. Staff was a member of the American Historical Association, the Southern Historical Association and the Associates of the Institute of Early American History and Culture. Staff was also a member of the Bay Area Electric Railroad Association, the Pacific Locomotive Association, and the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society. He married his wife Lavada in 1949. Virgil C. Staff died on December 28, 2008.

73.5 linear feet + 4 oversize boxes

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 Head Librarian. 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.

This collection is open for research at our off-site storage facility with one week's notice. Contact Library & Archives staff to arrange for access.