SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY, an American trans portation system, comprising, with its affiliated companies, 16,00o m. of railroad and 5,900 m. of water lines. It serves directly a large part of the United States west of the Mississippi river (at New Orleans) through to the Pacific coast, besides steamships plying between New York and the ports of New Orleans, Gal veston, Houston, Boston, New Bedford, Baltimore and Norfolk. Its lines extend into Mexico as far south as Guadalajara.
Construction of its first unit, the Central Pacific main line, completed in 1869, was the link from California across the Sierra Nevada mountains to Ogden, Utah, now 782 m. from San Fran cisco, which completed the first through rail line between the eastern and western shores of the North American continent. In 1883 the Sunset route was opened for traffic between New Orleans and San Francisco via El Paso and Los Angeles, distance miles. In 1887 the Shasta route was completed, giving a rail line between San Francisco and Portland, Ore., distance 771 miles. Southern Pacific is also part of the Golden State route from Los Angeles to Chicago, its line, Los Angeles to Tucumcari, N. M.,
1,146 m., being one-half the distance to Chicago.
The construction of the Central Pacific, followed by the South ern Pacific and the merged operation of both, was under the inspiration of four citizens of Sacramento; Leland Stanford, Collis P. Huntington, Mark Hopkins and Charles Crocker. Stan ford, prior to his death, founded and endowed Stanford university. After the death of these men E. H. Harriman secured control and carried to conclusion projects previously planned, including the straight and level 104 m. line from Lucin to Ogden, of which 313- m. were built across Great Salt Lake.
The assets of the Southern Pacific Company exceed $2,300,000, 000; its capital shares of $377,300,000 par value are owned by 54,000 stockholders. Its equipment for handling traffic consists of 2,25o locomotives, 3,100 passenger cars, 70,00o freight cars, 13 ocean steamships and to ferry steamboats; it also has half ownership in 40,00o refrigerator cars. (A. D. MeD.)