Santa Maria Valley

Company History: The SMV opened in 1911 with a line from a connection with the Southern Pacific in Guadalupe, California to Roadamite 23 miles away. In 1950, the 8 miles of line on the Roadamite end was abandoned leaving a 15 mile line to Gates. In the diesel era, SMV was a fan of General Electric switchers, acquiring five 70-tonners and a rare U6B. In recent years, a former Milwaukee Road GP9 has also joined the roster. Sugar beets were a large source of traffic from the beginning until 1993 when the Union Sugar Beet plant finally closed. Other traffic includes asphalt, fertilizer, food, wallboard, lumber, machinery, petroleum products, plastics and scrap.

Brief History: The U.S. is a country of 50 states covering a vast swath of North America, with Alaska in the northwest and Hawaii extending the nation’s presence into the Pacific Ocean. Major Atlantic Coast cities are New York, a global finance and culture center, and capital Washington, DC. Midwestern metropolis Chicago is known for influential architecture and on the west coast, Los Angeles' Hollywood is famed for filmmaking.