Bagby Stationhouse, Water Tanks and Turntable, distrikt historik në Shtetet e Bashkuara
The Bagby Stationhouse, Water Tanks, and Turntable are a group of railroad structures from the early 1900s originally built in Bagby, California, and relocated to El Portal in 1966. The wooden station building contains a waiting room, freight area, and upstairs quarters for the stationmaster, while two large timber water tanks stand nearby, along with a hand-operated turntable built from heavy wood and iron that allowed locomotives to turn around.
These structures were built around 1907 as part of the Yosemite Valley Railroad, which operated between Merced and Yosemite National Park from 1907 to 1945. When the area faced flooding due to dam construction in 1966, the buildings were relocated from Bagby to El Portal to preserve them before the water rose.
The station's layout and structures reflect how trains brought visitors and supplies into a remote region. Walking around the site, you notice how the building and equipment were designed as a unified working place where travelers and freight moved through together.
The site is located in El Portal just outside the main park area and is accessible from the main road. The structures are viewable from ground level, making it easy to walk around and observe the old railroad equipment and buildings at your own pace.
The turntable stands out as a hand-operated mechanism, believed to be one of the few still working in the United States in this manner. Visitors can observe how the simple yet effective design of wood and iron allowed locomotives to rotate without motors or complex machinery.
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