Like our rail car collection, the contents of our archives also reflect our focused interest in the railroads of Southern California. The Museum’s Collection Policy defines five focus companies, the major railroads and transit companies that served Southern California: the Pacific Electric, Los Angeles Railway, Santa Fe , Southern Pacific and Union Pacific railroads, as well as predecessor and related companies. We specialize in materials relating to the Southern California operations of these companies, with our largest holdings being materials from the Red Cars of the Pacific Electric and the Yellow Cars of the Los Angeles Railway.
The archives are located at the Thomas Grose Archival Facility on our main site in Perris, California. The Museum’s collections are almost entirely the result of individual gifts during its more than 63 years of existence and actively seeks photographs, records, drawings, books, timetables, advertisements and ephemeral materials from our focus companies.
The Thomas Grose Archival Facility is open most Mondays and Saturdays from 11;00AM to 5:00PM. Contact the Archives Manager for additional details at archives@socalrailway.org. Volunteers and visitors are always welcome!
