Last Update:  October 15, 2011
This map shows the current operational line of the Oregon Pacific Railroad, East Portland Line.   The branch line starts at the UP/OPR interchange in East Portland and continues
south to the Milwaukie Industrial Park where most of the OPR's customers are located.   The OPR shops are also located within this area.  The track follows along the Willamette River
and is flanked by the river on one side and scenic wetlands on the other side and is some of the most scenic inner city track in the country.
It starts in Milwaukie, Oregon.

When Mr. Samuels purchased the remains of the Portland Traction Company, their shops were located near the interchange between the Southern Pacific
(now UP) and PTC in East Portland.  Mr. Samuels chose to relocate the shops to Milwaukie because his old steel product business was located there and he
already owned a good piece of land right in the middle of the industrial park where his customers were located.   By being closer to his customers, he could
more effectively and quickly serve their needs.   It was this increased customer service that is credited with the success of the Oregon Pacific Railroad.

The property was located inside the triangle that was bordered by the McBrod Spur, AmeriCold Spur and McBrod Ave.    Mr. Samuels would ultimately sell his
steel fabrication building and work on the property next door.   By 1996 he would construct a new shop and office building that now exists there today.

Mr. Samuels's first headquarters of the then called "East Portland Traction Company" was a caboose.  An ex-Union Pacific caboose that was loaned by NWR
museum.   The caboose was painted in Portland Traction "orange" and lettered for Mr. Samuels's new company, to match his primary engine, the No. 100.

The Milwaukie Shops are the hub of the railroad where all repairs and maintenance are conducted for both branch lines.

The Milwaukie Industrial district essentially consists of three south running spurs off of the East Portland line.   The shops are located at the beginning of the
center spur.  The center spur runs south right along side SE McBrod Ave and is a little more than 1/2 mile long, ending at the intersection of SE McBrod Ave
and SE 17th St.   This spur is regularly used by the OPR for setting up trains to be taken to East Portland.   Parts of the spur are also an excellent place for
the OPR to store cars, out of service engines and other equipment as its shops and small yard are normally filled up with more regularly used equipment.    
The other two spurs service businesses in the district and are regularly used to ship railroad traffic.

The industrial park was originally constructed in the late 1950s on old World War Two war housing property that was vacated.  The Portland Traction
Company and its parent company purchased the property with the intent of subdividing it and attracting new rail customers who would come in and ship by rail.
At the time it was called Kellogg Park.   A term largely lost to time as the industrial park is no longer unified under any single ownership.   It's largely
segregated among several owners, some of whom have allowed much non-rail utilized commercial and public infrastructure to be built in the area.
An aerial view of part of the Milwaukie Industrial Park and the OPR railroad spurs.

The line coming in from the top left is the OPR East Portland mainline coming in from
East Portland Junction.

The far left spur is the Heleco Spur, named for the Heleco Distribution Center that is
served by this spur.

The OPR Milwaukie shops are located in the middle top with the short spurs.

The middle spur is the McBrod Street spur.  No shippers exist on this spur, but it is still
used for switching and storage by the OPR.   Several small sidings exist into industrial
complexes on this spur.

The far right left spur is the AmeriCold spur, one of the major shippers still remaining
on the East Portland Branch.
Aerial view of the OPR shops
looking south
Aerial view of the OPR shops
looking east
Aerial view of the OPR shops
looking west
The 17th street crossing as seen in 2008.  Picture on the left is looking east.  Picture on right is looking west.
The 802 switching cars in the Milwaukie industrial park along McBrod Street in 2005.   These other photos from 2005 show some of the equipment that used to be stored towards the
end of the spur (some of it is still there today).  The 1010 slug shown in the photo was later sold.  
These photos show the area in 2005.   On the left, the remains of the Oregon City Branch is just a short stub spur that is occasionally used for car storage.   It looks the same today.  On
the right is the sad remains of the huge car barn constructed around 1902, with the substation in the background.  The car barn was converted into a plastics factory at some point and
used as such until 2002.   The building and property were then sold off and ultimately sold to a developer who knocked down the structure and built condos there.
Photos on the left were taken in 2005 of the former OWP&Ry Co.  electrical substation was built by the  Oregon Water Power & Railway Company in 1905.  It's original purpose was to
provide power for the electrical railroads that ran through this area until  the 1950s.   More information can be found on our Portland Traction Co. History Page.    Photos on right were
taken in 2009 and show the substation with an OPR train running through the area.   Far right photo taken in the same area in 1942, showing a PEPCo Freight with electric motors
running over this line.

Golf Junction during the OWP & Ry days.  The substation in the background still exists.  The line that the trolleys are sitting on is the OPR's East Portland Branch.  And the line in the
foreground is the Oregon City Branch, of which only this track shown, a couple of car lengths, still exists.

A view of Golf Links station, later called Golf Junction, date unknown, but probably the early years.

One more historical Golf Junction photo, date unknown.
These photos were taken in 2005 when the old abandoned spur leaving
the OPR could still be seen.  Today it's since been paved over.   Picture on
the left is looking west.   On the right is looking east.
These aerial photos show a major change that took place on the OPR East Portland line only a few years ago.   On the left are sat photos taken sometime prior to 2003.  In these
photos we see the old car barn that was later converted into a molded container factory.  This factory was a shipper on the OPR.  However, by 2003, the factory had shut down and the
historical building was torn down.    In the photos on the right, we see what became of the carbarn.   The building was completely razed except for one wall on the east side.   Today, the
property has condos or apartments with the remaining wall being integrated into the new development.  In these photos you can also see the historical substation building show in the
above ground photos.
The former Portland Traction Company car barn.  These photos were taken by Brian R Sopke from the ground in 2000 while he worked as a conductor on Mr. Samuel's Samtrak
passenger train.   Today, only one wall of this giant complex still exists.   The picture on the far right is described by Brian as the Motorman's clubhouse, probably also built between
1892-1901.  In this picture it appeared abandoned in 2000.  The building still exists today and was apparently converted into apartments.
Brian R Sopke photos, 2000
In early 2007, the OPR was forced to build an enclosed fenced in area at Golf Junction to protect its
property.   The DR Horton Company built the condos that you see in these pictures.   During construction,
they appear to have told prospective buyers that the railroad was abandoned and would be going away.    
In addition, DR Horton construction crews ripped out approximately 50 feet of OPR railroad track without
OPR's  knowledge or permission.   This resulted in legal action by the OPR and having to put up this
fence to protect its remaining track.
3 left photos by Kelly Anable photos, May 2007 -  1 right photo by B. McCamish, June 2007
Brian R Sopke photos taken while he was a conductor for Samtrak.  These photos were taken at Sellwood station, which was located at the 9th and Linn Street
crossings, when Samtrak was in operation.
Brian R Sopke photos, 2000, 2001
The first two photos are Brian R Sopke photos taken of the crossing at Spokane Street in 1998.  The left photo looking north, the right photo looking south.   The last photo shows
Spokane Street as viewed from the air.
Some photos of the yard in 2005.
The following pages have numerous photos of the OPR from Oaks Park to East Portland Yard.
Holiday Express 2006 --- SP&S 700 End of Steam 50th Anniversary Excursion --- Holiday Express 2005
Chris Fussell took these photos during the 2006 Holiday Express on the OPR.  The first shot is the EPTC No. 100 pulling a string of cars from East Portland to Milwaulkie.  The second
shot is of the SP4449 pulling the Holiday Express.
Brian R Sopke photos taken in 1998 of  "The Oaks" Station.  The left photo is looking north, the right photo is looking south.  What's interesting about these photos is how different
things look today.  Here you can see the mainline and the abandoned grade next to it that existed as a second set of rails when this line was double track.  Today, a paved bike path
exists where the tracks are in these photos, and the mainline moved over to the abandoned gravel grade shown in these photos.
These aerial photos show "The Oaks" Station.  Located right next to the famous and historical Oaks Park Amusement Park.   This railroad once brought train passengers to this still
open amusement park some 100 years ago.   For many decades, passengers ceased to ride these rails until Mr. Samuels's created Samtrak.   Then Oaks Park once again became a
train station, albeit, without an offiical structure.   Although Samtrak has long since ceased operating, "The Oaks" Station has since become the hub of several major public events in
the last few years, including the hosting of both the SP&S 700 and SP 4449 steam engines and passenger rides.
The four left photos were taken during the 2005 Holiday Express.  They show the SP4449 at the Holegate curve between Oaks Park and the Ross Island Bridge.   The four left photos
were taken during the SP&S Farewell to Steam Excursion in 1996 and all show parts of the line between "The Oaks" Station and East Portland.
Photo of East Portland taken in 2005 and 2006.  These photos were taken just south of the East Portland Yard.   The SP4449 photos were taken during the 2005 Holiday Express, the
two right photos were taken from a caboose on the 2006 SP&S 700 excursion.   In these photos, the track just south of East Portland had recently undergone some major changes.   
What was street trackage for many decades was converted into conventional rail and tie trackage with conventional street crossings in 2005 during a City contruction project.  It was the
end of an era.  The last section of street trackage was gone from East Portland, but the OPR itself lives on and the new trackage is actually safer for the railroad and nearby businesses.
Aerial view of the OPR shops
looking north
AmeriCold is a major food service packing, storage and distribution company, which specializes in cold food storage at its Portland facility.   The facility is
almost 200,000 square feet and has a capacity of 26 truck doors and 6 rail car spots.    The OPR delivers food goods by railcar which are then distributed to
the local area via truck.   Food goods are also shipped from AmeriCold via rail.    AmeriCold and the OPR share Ownership and maintenance costs of the
spur, as is common with industrial spurs located on private property.

The rail spur into this facility was built in 1953 and the spur has the only water crossing trestle on the East Portland Branch and is the original trestle built over
55 years ago.   This trestle has been a source of challenges for the OPR over the years.  Normally the creek that passes under it, Johnson Creek, is only a
few feet deep, but during the winter, the creek can run at near flood stage and carries with it, a lot of debris.   At one point, some of the pilings of the center
bent were knocked out and the trestle had to be reinforced with a steel beam.   The top decking, ties and rail were all replaced in the spring of 2011.  Most of
the spur has been upgraded in the last several years, including an in pavement section on a tight curve inside the AmeriCold facility.

The first half of this spur is on a 6% grade.  Cars must be delivered with the locomotive as the last car in the train as there is no way to run around the train on
the spur.   When loads are brought in from East Portland, the train is brought down the McBrod Spur.   The locomotive is then cut off from the train and
backed into the Shop Yard and the loaded cars are rolled past the locomotive.   The locomotive then pulls the cars up the McBrod Spur towards the OPR
mainline near the top of the hill and switches to the AmeriCold spur where the loads are let down the hill and into the AmeriCold facility.

Its a challenging and unique switching move giving the operating crews of the OPR unique and rare train movement experience.
The Heleco Spur is located in between the OPR shops and 17th Street and is named for the Heleco Distribution Center that it serves.    Goodwill is a major
tenant of the complex and has only been here since 2004 but unfortunately does not ship over the railroad, despite occupying a large portion of the industrial
complex this spur was built to serve.

Food Services of America occupied the space that is now used by Goodwill and was a major shipper on the OPR until they relocated to Woodburn.   Several
other shippers have also relocated from the complex over the last few years.

Today, shippers on this spur include a welcome new customer called J&D Refrigerated Services, which just moved into the facility and will be shipping on the
OPR.

This spur was constructed sometime prior to 1961 to serve the Sysco Food Services Company, which built the 300,000 square foot building that exists here.  
Mr. Samuels as a teenager actually helped to build this spur.   Mr. Samuels relates the story of helping the railroad crew building the spur, when one of the
men asked young Samuels to fetch the "roadmaster".   Mr. Samuels did exactly as he was told and fetched the "roadmaster" which was the supervisor of track
maintainence of the railroad.  When the roadmaster showed up, everyone had a good laugh.   The roadmaster the railroad crew wanted was not the
supervisor, but a tool used for pulling spikes which was also called a roadmaster!

In 2003, OPR crews replaced the entire Helico switch and track with all new ties and rail, conjunction with a replacement of the crossing into the Helico
Complex with all new rails, ties and concrete panels.
Views of the other half of the spur inside AmeriCold from the locomotive taken in 2008. (3 on left) and on the ground (3 on right)
The 17th Street Crossing is the first major public crossing after leaving the Milwaukie Industrial Park and is the largest and busiest crossing on the East
Portland branch.   It is one of only two crossings on the branch that have crossing gates and lights.  It's also at the crest of the 6% grade of the branch.   While
crossing this intersection trains are also transitioning from or too one of the steepest hills of any railroad, which makes for challenging railroading.   When
pulling heavy loads up the hill, there's the challenge of controlling wheel slip.   When bringing loads down the grade, there's the challenge of using the proper
amount of brakes to bring the train down the hill safely without using too much that the train stops or too little that it reaches too high of a speed.

The 17th street crossing has not always had crossing gates and lights.  At one point, it had lights only and then gates were added.   The crossing is
considered a 3 way crossing as traffic from Ochoco St. is also stopped at the intersection by a 3rd gating system.   This is because there's a slight chance that
traffic wanting to make a left hand turn from Ochoco onto 17th street, could accidentally drive around the south bound 17th street gate.  However, this
crossing gate is not really needed and may be removed at some point.
After crossing 17th street and heading west, the line passes through an extremely rare and historic section of the East Portland Branch.   Here remains some
of the original double track of the trolley days with the north track being of rail originally laid in the early 20th century.  The south track, which is now the
mainline, was relaid rail in the 1950s, possibly from the Bull Run branch.   The rail is most unique in this short section in that it was welded in place...in the
1950s.   The welding was done using the over head trolley wires that existed at the time.

Near 13th Ave the original substation for the then named Oregon Water Power & Railway Company, that was built in 1905, still exists.   A spur once traveled
north from this location and connected with trolley lines that ran north and south in the middle of 13th Ave and crossed the existing OPR mainline at one time.
Looking west down the grade from 17th street towards 13th in 2008.  The old double track siding remains are on the right.  Mainline on the left.
At one time what is now known as Golf Junction was a major interchange on the Portland Traction Line.   Here existed the above substation, a car barn, shops
and other facilities for the railroad and the interchange for the branch to Oregon City.   Trolley tracks also ran north and south along 13th street and once
crossed the currently existing Portland Traction railroad tracks.    A station once existed here as well.   The earliest years, this was called "Golf Links", but the
name was later changed to "Gold Junction".   The Junction referring to the two traction lines that intersected and the Oregon City Branch taking off from here
to the south.

Today, Golf Junction is little more than a siding.   The spur to Gladstone and Oregon City was abandoned and removed in 1968.  A few car lengths of track
still exist which are sometimes used to store cars.   The car barn was later converted to a plastics factory which was shut down in 2002 and torn down in 2003
to make way for condos which are located right next to the tracks.    A double track still exists here with the siding used for storage.    Recently an enclosed
fence was constructed to protect equipment that is stored here.

The Springwater trail is about to be extended through Golf Junction.   When this happens, it's hoped that new Golf Junction station similar to the one that used
to exist here, can be built for use by both the users of the trail and the OPR railroad.
The Linn/9th Street crossing is a place located just northwest of Golf Junction where two streets cross the railroad at the same location.   A spur once left the
line and headed north but was abandoned many years ago.  Until a few years ago, the remains of that spur could still be seen in the street.   It has since been
paved over.   

Also near this crossing is a new piece of property that was deeded over to the OPR as part of the Metro purchase of part of the OPR right of way to extend the
Springwater trail.   A new siding will be constructed onto the property and it will used for car storage, with it likely being the future home of the new Santa Rosa
Business Car that was recently purchased by the OPR.
The Marion Street Crossing is located at the south end of a quarter mile long cut between Harney St. and Marion St.  The road that crosses the railroad here
goes to a private Marina on the Willamette River.    In the fall of 2011, this crossing was replaced with all new track, ties and concrete panels as part of a long
on going project to replace all crossings on the East Portland Branch.   Marion and Linn Street were the last two crossings left to complete.
The Marion street crossing looking north.   Left photo taken in 2008, right photo taken in 2005.
Harney Street Crossing is another crossing for a road that leads to another private Marina on the Willamette River.

This crossing recently recieved some upgrades as part of the Portland Sewage Pipe Project, when the railroad had to be moved over from several inches to
several feet in 2008.   All new track, ties and concrete panels were also added to this crossing at that time.
During the winter of 2008, the OPR agreed to relocate its track several feet over in conjunction with the City of Portland's big sewer pipe project.
This involved relocating the track from several inches to several feet and also redoing several crossings.  2 Left pictures are the Harney Street Area looking southeast, showing the
track before and after it was shifted over in this area by several feet.    The next four photos show the crossing panels being installed in the spring of 2008.
All photos courtesy of Kelly Anable and the OPR, March, 2008
Photos of the first half of the AmeriCold Spur taken in 2008.  From left to right...
(1) Looking west as the AmeriCold spur (right) splits from the McBrod Spur (left)  (2) Looking east, the AmeriCold spur on the left  (3)  Looking east, the AmeriCold spur approaches the
McBrod Ave crossing.  (4)  Looking west, the AmeriCold spur crosses McBrod Ave.   (5) Looking west, west of the McBrod Crossing.  (6) The spur crosses Johnson Creek just west of
the McBrod Crossing, looking west.
Heleco spur photos from 2008 and 2009., from left to right....
(1) Looking north as the spur departs the mainline and heads south  (2 & 3) Looking south down the spur.  (4 & 5) Looking at the end of the spur from 17th street. (6) 1202 switching
cars out in this spur
The McBrod Ave Spur is the longest spur of the Milwaukie Industrial Park.  It is also the only spur that does not currently have any shipping customers.   At
one time, customers on the south end of this spur kept both the Portland Traction Company and later the OPR, fairly busy with traffic, but occupiers of the
building have changed and they no longer utilize rail service.   

At the north end of the spur is the OPR railroad shops.   The rest of the spur runs along side McBrod Ave and contains several short sidings for a number of
buildings along the spur.     The south end of the spur is utilized by the OPR for excess equipment, locomotive and car storage.  The middle part of the spur is
used to temporarily store both loaded and empty cars and is utilized to switch the power from one end to the other, so that the locomotive can be in proper
position for switching cars onto the Helico Spur or Americold Spur.    To switch into Helico the locomotive must be on the south end of the train.   To switch into
McBrod it must be on the north end.
Photos of the McBrod Ave spur taken in 2008, from left to right....
(1)  siding off the McBrod Ave spur about half way between the shops and the end of the spur  (2) Looking south at another siding into loading docks one of the buildings.   (3) Yet
another siding and loading docks  (4) The white box car is near the end of the spur.  It's been there for years as a buffer car.   (5)  the brown box car behind the before mentioned white
box car marks the very end of the spur.
These photos taken around 2008.  This little bridge is known as "south bridge".  It is one of two small pedestrian underpass bridges along the East Portland line between Oaks Park
and the Ross Island Bridge.  This one located at Oaks Park.  The other, called "north bridge" is located about 1 mile north of here.  The other photos show "The Oaks" station (former
called "Oaks Park Station" ) when in use for a semi-annual steam event.   Far right photos show that most days of the year, this station is a rather quiet part of the line.  Only coming to
life with a passenger train event is taking place or for private OPR passenger charters.
Continuing north, the line passes under the Sellwood bridge and then immediately crosses over Spokane Street.  A major crossing that is not protected and
involves a 3 way stop with it's entrance into the popular Oaks Amusement Park.
Nearby is a fire hydrant which serves to fill up the water tenders of the SP&S 700 and SP 4449 when they attend the generally semi-annual steam events on
the OPR.
The section of the East Portland branch between Spokane Street and the Ross Island bridge a very unique section of railroad and one of the most scenic in
the Portland area.   Here, the tracks pass by the Oaks Amusement Park and "The Oaks" Station, generally the base of operations for any public steam or
passenger event held on the OPR.  Continuing north, the tracks pass through Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuse to the east and the Willamette River to the west.   
In addition, a heavily used paved bike and hiking path occupies the former PTC track, just to the west of the OPR mainline and follows the OPR the entire
distance from Spokane Street to almost the East Portland yard.

Major points along this section of track are Spokane Street to Oaks Park, which comprise of several former station and spur points called "The Chutes" in old
PTC time tables.   North of "The Oaks" station the line continues about 1 mile before entering what is now called "Holegate Curve", a large sweeping curve that
follows the bank of the Willamette River.   At one time a track bridged either end of this curve with a log dump on the Willamette River.   The old grade can
barely be seen today.   North of the Holegate curve, the line enters a reverse curve and passes Ross Island Sand and Gravel, which has a private crossing
from its main facility across the railroad and to a boat ramp on the Willamette, where crews can access Ross Island itself and it's barge system.

A still existing spur north of here travels into the Ross Island Sand and Gravel complex, although this spur is in very poor condition and is now only used for
light MoW storage.    A long straight stretch to the Ross Island Bridge, used to have several industrial sidings and spurs, all of which are now long gone.

Passing under the Ross Island Bridge, the train then enters the industrial area of East Portland.   Here, the track used to turn into a double street track, but
the street track was removed in 2005 as part of a city road project and the OPR mainline was rebuilt as a single track without pavement or concrete panels
except for the three crossings that seperate the trains from the Ross Island Bridge to the East Portland Yards.

Several industries used to ship by rail in this area with several spurs that took off into different directions, but these are all gone now.
East Portland is where OPR cars are interchanged with the Union Pacific and switched in the yard.    When the PTC was in operation, before being purchased
by Mr. Samuels, the base of operations and the locomotive shops were located in this yard.  Mr. Samuels moved the operations to the Milwaulkie industrial
park where he could be closer to his customers and build new shops on property he already owned.    The yard has undergone a number of changes over the
years, with some track being removed or changed.   But the main interchange point still includes a north and south leg from the Union Pacific.

By 2010, major changes to the OPR yard have undergone final planning and reconstruction has begun.   The Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation has
purchased property near the OPR yard, which will later be turned into the new ORHF Railroad museum.   Tri-met has finalized plans for the construction of the
Milwaukie Light Rail and the City of Portland has already begun construction of the Street car extension.  All of these projects will have a major impact on the
OPR yard and over the next few years, the OPR will undergo a complete rebuild and relocation to facilitate these other projects.

Partial construction of some segments of the new OPR yard have already begun, but the major construction and relocation of the yard is expected to take
place in March through May of 2012.
Map of the yard as it is currently laid out of as Summer, 2008.   The blue track is the Union Pacific double track mainline.   The red track is the OPR interchange, yard and mainline
heading south towards Milwaukie.    Today, the yard looks somewhat different, with the outside run around track now cut off and part of the new yard already constructed earlier than
needed to house ORHF passenger cars in preparation for their move to the new facility in 2012.
These photos were taken in 2008, but the only the equipment stored there has changed.   The track arrangement and shop buildings is largely the
same as today.   This property was purchased by Mr. Samuels in the 1970s when we purchased the property to build his new steel fabrication facility that was located behind the
current OPR shops.
Photos of the 11th street crossing.   
Looking south and then north taken
in 2008.  This is prior to the new
concrete panels being installed.
View of this crossing, looking south and then north and then north again from an OPR
locomotive.  These photos were taken in 2008 prior to the new crossing being installed in the
fall of 2011 with new concrete panels.
The first two photos are Umatilla Street looking north and then south in 2008.  The next three photos show the crossing construction and replacement that occured in 2008.
Spokane Street crossing in 2008, looking south (note the Sellwood bridge south of the crossing) and then looking north towards Oaks Park.
OPR 100 Roster Page
No. 100 is the most
famous engine in the
Northwest and has served
on this line for half a
century.  Today it continues
to serve regular back up
service.
OPR 1202 Roster Page
No. 1202 is the most
powerful locomotive in the
OPR fleet.   It is generally the
primary locomotive for the
East Portland Branch, but
shares regular duties with
the No. 100.
Heleco spur photos from 2008
The spur leaves the mainline just west of the 17th street crossing and heads south (left in this pictures)
Copyright © 2004-2011 All Rights Reserved
A train of empty cars being removed from the Helico spur and taken south towards the OPR shops in 2010, from left to right....
(1 & 2) Heading south on the Helico spur  (4 - 6) Train switching from the Helico spur to the mainline/OPR shop spur.
The first three photos are of a northbound train of empties heading from Milwaukie to East Portland in the historic cut between 17th and 13th Sts in early 2010.   The next two photos
were taken in 2009 and show an extremely rare double header on the line in 2009.   Photo on the far right was taken by Brian Sopke in 1998.  This is looking south towards 17th street.
OPR 802 Roster Page
No. 802 is a former
Southern Pacific switcher
and the only OPR
locomotive with dynamic
brakes.  It's currently
undergoing a full
restoration on the East
Portland Branch.
OPR 1413 Roster Page
No. 1413 is the newest
locomotive in the OPR
fleet, also making 1200
h.p. its a fully rebuilt,
Canadian heritage GMD-1.
EAST PORTLAND BRANCH of the OREGON PACIFIC RAILROAD
For a complete detailed history of the East Portland Branch when it was owned and operated by the Portland Traction
Company and its predecessor railroads, with many included photos, please visit our...

Portland Traction Company & PEPCo History Page
Oregon Pacific Shops and the Milwaukie Industrial Park
Locomotives Currently in Active Service on the East Portland Branch
Maps of the East Portland Branch
About the East Portland Branch
McBrod Ave. Spur
Left photos show the shops in 2005.  The orange caboose, which has since been moved, is shown where it was parked since 1991, utilized as an office for Mr. Samuels in
the early years of the EPTC and OPR.   Middle photos, show the shop property in the late 1970s verses 2005.  In the 1970s, Mr. Samuels was utilizing this property for storage and
preparing to build his steel fabrication shop, which would be located behind where the current shop building is today.    The last photo taken in 1987 shows the recently aquired No.
100 freshly restored at Mr. Samuels Steel Fab Shop.  Today, he no longer owns the building in this photo having located to the property in the foreground and behind the photographer.
Photos of the former Samuels Steel Products building being constructed on the property behind the existing OPR shop property.    Mr. Samuels also aquired the current OPR shop
property at the same time and built spurs into this property where he would store equipment, including smaller locomotives that he purchased at that time.
Golf Junction, 13th Street to11th Street
From left to right, the 13th street crossing looking north, then west, then east.   These photos were taken right after a brand new crossing was installed in the spring of 2011 with brand
new concrete panels.  
Photos: 2011
Linn & 9th Street double crossing
AmeriCold Spur
Photos of the first half of the AmeriCold Spur Johnson Creek Spur Rebuild in the Spring, 2011.  Many more photos can be found here.
The Johnson Creek bridge was originally built in 1954 as a 127 foot long open deck trestle with a 12 degree curve to the west.  The ties and stringers were replaced in 1978, but by
2011, the ties and rail were desperate need of replacement and upgrade.   In March, 2011, the entire upper deck, ties and rail were replaced.  The rail was replaced with fully welded
rail as well.  All work done by OPR crews, as is usually case with most track work on the OPR.
Heleco Spur
These photos were taken in 2011 and show the main OPR shop and office building.  This building was built in 1996 and contains office space and the main shops.   A one engine stall
exists that is just big enough to allow any of the switchers or MoW equipment to be brought inside and worked on.   Photos on the right give a description of the basic layout of the shop
yard.
First 4 photos show the Helico switch being replaced by the OPR in 2003 as part of the Helico crossing replacement project.   The last two photos were taken by Mr. Samuels
sometime in the early 1960s approximately, show Portland Traction Company crews switching out cars on this same spur in the early days.
17th Street Crossing
The East Portland Branch is one of two branch lines of the Oregon Pacific Railroad.   It was first railroad purchased by Richard Samuels and prior to 1996 was
called the East Portland Traction Company.   Prior to 1991, it was owned by the Portland Traction Company, which itself was jointly owned by the Southern
Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads.    In 1993, Mr. Samuels purchased the Southern Pacific Molalla Branch calling it the Molalla Western Railroad and by
1996, both companies were officially merged under one name, the Oregon Pacific Railroad.   The former East Portland Traction Company would be called the
OPR's East Portland Branch.   The Mololla Western would be called the Molalla Branch.

The East Portland Branch is the remains of a vast network of interurban railroads that once encompassed the entire Portland Area.   The remains comprises
approximately 5 miles of mainline track, with an interchange yard at the north end, that interchanges with the Union Pacific Railroad and an industrial park at
the south end.   The industrial park is where most customers are located as has been the case for this railroad going back into the Portland Traction Company
days.

The East Portland Branch starts at the UP East Portland Yards and runs in a southerly direction, where it runs along the Willamette River and through the
Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge.   It passes the Oaks Amusement Park, which is the oldest and only Amusement Park in the Portland Area.   It then continues
through the quiet suburban neighborhoods of Sellwood, before reaching the industrial park in Milwaukie.

The grade into the industrial park comprises of a 6% grade with crossings at the top and middle of the hill and 2 switches in the middle of the hill.   From the
middle of the hill to the bottom are two separate spurs that are both on a tight curve.   All of this makes for challenging railroading that requires a good bit of
skill and experience to operate over.

The East Portland Branch is the only OPR branch that operates passenger trains.   Currently the Molalla Branch with its excepted track cannot legally operate
passenger trains.  However, the East Portland Branch has Class 1 track designation from approximately Marion Street to the East Portland Yards.   This allows
trains to operate from Oaks Amusement Park to generally as far south as Spokane Street and as far north as into the East Portland Yards.

Passenger trains comprise of OPR private charters and an annual steam locomotive event put on by ORHF every December called the Holiday Express.

The majority of freight business comes from the Milwaukie Industrial park and comprises mostly of both inbound and outbound cold food storage.   The
majority of freight cars currently used on the line are refrigerator cars.   However, in the past, the line has supported everything from paper products to
alcoholic beverage shipments.
17th Street to 13th Ave.
Marion Street Crossing
Harney Street Crossing
Umatilla Street Crossing
Sellwood and the Spokane Street Crossing
The Oaks Bottom area - Oaks Amusement Park to the East Portland Yards
East Portland Yards
Umatilla Street Street is another crossing that accesses several large condos complexes along the Willamette River just south of the Sellwood Bridge.
This crossing was also replaced with all new ties, track and concrete panels in 2008 as part of the same pipe project that affected the Harney Street Crossing.
From left to right:
(1) Looking north from the Sellwood bridge as a southbound trolley heads towards Golf Junction.   (2) Looking south from the Ross Island Bridge as a northbound trolley
heads to East Portland.  Both taken by Robert T McVay most likely sometime in the 1950s during the final years of trolley operations.  (3) Southbound PTC train rounding the curve
south of Oaks Park, photo by Richard Samuels from the 1960s.   (4)  Photo of OPR 1202 and a loaded reefer stopped in the "The Oaks" Station spur in late 2011.
Richard Samuels Photos taken in the mid 1980s shows the Portland Traction Company switching McBrod Ave in it's final years.   By this time, the No. 100 and 200 had been sold off
and the PTC was using SW1500s borrowed from the Southern Pacific Railroad.
Richard Samuels photos taken in the mid 1980s show the PTC No. 200 on its last operational run with the PTC before it was sold off.  Shown here switching
the McBrod Spur.
This photo taken by Richard Samuels in the 1970s shows the OLCC spur which used to take off from the AmeriCold Spur just south of the bridge and entered a covered unloading
area of the OLCC building.  Shipments of liquior used to be brought in by rail.  But in later years, the OLCC would recieve all shipments by truck and this spur and track was removed.
Richard Samuels photo from the 1960s, shows the No. 100 coming up the steep hill out of the AmeriCold Spur and headed for the 17th street crossing, which is just behind the
photographer.
Some photos of the East Portland Yard under Portland Traction ownership, taken from the late 1970s through the mid 1980s.
A view of the East Portland Yards from a northbound OPR locomotive.  From the south end of the yard to the north end.  A lot of changes have taken place, but the new yard is not yet
finished.   When complete, the OPR will have a normal industrial sized yard once again, allbeit, much smaller than the yard used by the Portland Traction Company.