Inventory of the H. Lester Taylor Collection, 1887-1977
Processed by The California State Railroad Museum Library staff; machine-readable finding aid created by
Xiuzhi Zhou
California State Railroad Museum Library
111 "I" Street
Sacramento, California 95814
Phone: (916) 323-8073
Fax: (916) 327-5655
Email: csrmlibrary@csrmf.org
URL: http://www.csrmf.org/library.html
© 2000
California Secretary of State. All rights reserved.
Inventory of the H. Lester Taylor Collection, 1887-1977
Collection number: MS 35
California State Railroad Museum Library
Sacramento, California
Contact Information:
- California State Railroad Museum Library
- 111 "I" Street
- Sacramento, California 95814
- Phone: (916) 323-8073
- Fax: (916) 327-5655
- Email: csrmlibrary@csrmf.org
- URL: http://www.csrmf.org/library.html
- Processed by:
- The California State Railroad Museum Library staff
- Encoded by:
- Xiuzhi Zhou
© 2000 California State Railroad Museum. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: H. Lester Taylor Collection,
Date (inclusive): 1887-1977
Collection number: MS 35
Creator:
Taylor, H. Lester
Extent: 1 document box
Repository:
California State Railroad Museum Library
Sacramento, California 95814
Shelf location: Big Four Building or off-site storage. Please contact
the Library in advance of your visit.
Language:
English.
Administrative Information
Provenance
Gift of Railway & Locomotive Historical Society, Pacific Coast Chapter
Publication Rights
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 Senior
Curator. 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], H. Lester Taylor Collection, MS 35, California State Railroad Museum Library, Sacramento, California.
Collection Description
The collection consists of reminiscences and letters of H. Lester Taylor, an employee of the Southern Pacific Railroad from
1906 to 1965. He began service with the railroad as a messenger and served as messenger for Edward H. Harriman after the 1906
San Francisco earthquake. Mr. Taylor spent most of his career as a station agent in Northern California, serving 42 years
as agent at South Vallejo.
Also in the collection are letters and other documents relating to James C. Wilder, Taylor W. Heintzelman, Southern Pacific's
Assistant Master Mechanic and later Superintendent of Motive Power, and William McKenzie, Assistant General Master Mechanic
of the Southern Pacific in the late 1880s.
Folder 1
Reminiscences of H. Lester Taylor, 1969, including biographical material, activities at South Vallejo station during World War II, circus train operations and persons
whom he encountered while working for Southern Pacific.
Folder 2
Reminiscences of H. Lester Taylor written at various times, describing his activities as a telegrapher for the Southern Pacific,
and as agent at South Vallejo. They contain information on operations at the station during World War II, and mention the
South Pacific Coast Railroad.
Folder 3
Letters to Lynn Farrar, 1977, describing his career with Southern Pacific and operations at the South Vallejo station.
Folder 4
Letters concerning the Taylor family's living quarters at South Vallejo, 1932-1940.
Folder 5
Letters concerning leases of Southern Pacific property in the Vallejo area, 1933-1954.
Folder 6
Letters concerning leases of Southern Pacific property in North Vallejo and South Vallejo, 1936-1947.
Folder 7
Letters concerning Southern Pacific structures at South Vallejo, 1934-1941.
Folder 8
Miscellaneous letters relating to the South Vallejo station building, 1945-1954.
Folder 9
Letters concerning utility service to "Ark Dwellers" at South Vallejo, 1934-1938.
Folder 10
Documents relating to James C. Wilder and members of the Wilder family.
Folder 11
Taylor W. Heintzelman letters, 1888-1904, containing an autobiographical sketch written by Heintzelman at the time of his application for employment with Southern Pacific.
Folder 12
Letters to William McKenzie, Southern Pacific's Assistant General Master Mechanic, 1887-1889, concerning the operation of locomotives and personnel matters.
