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Jost (R. Dale M.D. and Betty) Archives of Western Railroads
MS 881
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
California State Railroad Museum Library & Archives
Title: R. Dale Jost M.D. and Betty Jost Archives of Western Railroads
Identifier/Call Number: MS 881
Physical Description:
68 Linear Feet
17 record cartons + 6 oversize boxes + 1 tube box + 45 map case drawers
Date (inclusive): 1986-2021
Abstract: This collection represents a comprehensive documentation of railroads in Washington, Oregon and California. It includes indexes
created by R. Dale Jost M.D. and superimposed on top of USGS maps to show logging, mining, incline, commercial spurs, common
carrier and operating railroads in a particular geographic area and listing all related referencing documents.
Physical Location: Statewide Museum Collections Center
Language of Material: English.
Collection is open for research by appointment. Contact Library Staff.
Additional accruals of index maps and reference materials for California and Oregon are expected in 2022.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated between 2020 and 2022 by R. Dale Jost, MD.
MS 881 is arranged into 2 series:
Series 1. Index maps and unit maps
Subseries 1. Maps
Subseries 2. Indexes
Series 2. Reference documents
R. Dale Jost, MD was born in Santa Monica California on July 14. 1938. His early teens were spent in New York City. He returned
to California in 1956 and was employed in the Aerospace industry, eventually becoming a non-degree engineer. Concurrently,
he earned a degree in Business Administration from UCLA in 1964 and later , a Doctorate in Medicine from UC Irvine in 1968.
He served as an Anesthesiologist in the U.S. Army from 1970 to 1972. He officially retired from Medicine in 2006 although
he stopped full time practice in 1986. He married his third wift, Betty, in 1986. Together they shared four children, six
granchildren and 2 great grandchildren. Betty was a dedicated and indispensible partner in the Archives project until her
death in 2016.
This project started as a debate between Dr. Jost, his friend Harold Sandstrom, and John Labbe (noted railroad historian)
over whether Washington or Oregon had the most miles of logging railroads. To make the determination Dr. Jost, Mrs. Jost and
Mr. Sandstrom endeavored to compile a collection of rail maps of the Pacific Northwest. The effort eventually evolved into
a project to identify all railroads, past and present, operating in California, Oregon and Washington. The project benefited
from the special skillls of Mrs. Jost who brought her skill of speed-reading to the project and of Harold, whose father worked
in the forest industry, and who was a forestry employee with an eidetic memory.
While Dr. Jost directly corresponded with the rail company employees and their engineering departments and collected the
physical maps, Mr. Sandstrom approached the officers of the companies who ran the lumber companies and railroads for information.
While the list of people who had also contributed to the project was too long to list, Dr. Jost specifically cited James Hannum,
M.D.., Megan Moholt, archivist, Weyerhaeuser Archives Pete Replinger, Neil Zimmerman, Lloyd Palmer, Forrest Savory, Dennis
Thompson, Albert Wiest, Glenn Hawkins, David Sprau and John Labbe as especially important to the process of collecting and
organizing the railroad grade maps. While Mrs. Jost and Mr. Sandstrom have since passed, Dr. Jost has continued to collect
maps as part of the project, making the project an ongoing effort for the better part of 43 years.
[Identification of item].R. Dale Jost M.D. and Betty Jost Archives of Western Railroads, MS 881, California State Railroad
Museum Library & Archives, Sacramento, California.
This collection represents a comprehensive documentation of railroads in Washington, Oregon and California. It includes indexes
created by R. Dale Jost M.D. superimposed on top of USGS maps to show logging, mining, incline, commercial spurs, common carrier
and other operating railroads in a particular geographic area and lists all related referencing documents.
Original Unit maps with index map, pertaining to the staes of California, Oregon and Washington are divided into sections.
Includes copies of indexes and index maps reduced to 11 x 17: and bound into 13 volumes; [may include uit maps]. Volume I
originates in Washington on the Canadian border and Volume XIII will conclude in California on the Mexican border. All maps
are numbered state by state and organized according to the Geo-Loc system. Each volume contains a cartographic directory depicting
the location of each Index Map.
Each map includes a list of all records used to determine the operating railroads and spurs in a particular geographic location.
Reference documents were numbered, and the reference document number is listed on each map. Series 2 contains photocopies
and original reference documents. There are several indexes to the reference documents. One index provides a list of reference
documents arranged numerically. There are indexes to aerial photography, a basic index to USGS maps, and an index to articles,
reports and archival collections that were consulted to create the index maps.
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.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Logging railroads -- California
Inclined railroads
Mining railroads
Common carriers