Southern Pacific’s Sacramento Shops were centered around the erecting and machine shop, where heavy locomotive maintenance was performed. The facility housed craftsmen who were experts in every step of overhauling and retrofitting the railroad’s equipment. Our page takes a deep dive into the erecting and machine shop with many photos, plans, and a historical narrative.
We are kicking off a deep dive into the history of the Southern Pacific Railroad’s massive Sacramento Shops with plans for the car machine shop where railroad cars were built as late as 1937. Later, during the change to diesel locomotives, the first floor of the building was mostly used for a wheel shop, while the plating, painting, and upholstery shops on the second floor continued refurbishing Southern Pacific’s passenger car fleet. Check out the photos and plans of this historic building.
An outstanding sample of turn-of-the-century industrial architecture, the Southern Railway machine and erecting shops in Spencer, North Carolina would be perfect for a long, narrow space on your model railroad layout. And, the repeating brick masonry lends itself to selective compression to fit the space you have.