Preservation groups save historic Amador County railroad
By Matt Weiser, Sacramento Bee
The historic Amador Central Railroad, recently threatened with bulldozing, will remain open to recreational train travel following a sale to preservation groups.
Sierra Pacific Industries, a privately held logging company, agreed to sell the railroad to the Amador County Historical Society and the nonprofit Recreational Railroad Coalition, said Larry Bowler, the coalition’s president.
The sale price, said Sierra Pacific spokesman Mark Pawlicki, was $1. This includes the tracks, the land they sit on, and all related railroad equipment. It does not include any railroad vehicles. The deal closed Oct. 16.
“We could have chosen to sell the right of way and scrap the metal from the rails,” said Pawlicki. “But we didn’t think that was an appropriate use for an historical entity like the rail line.”