Rails around Mojave National Preserve

Thus historically Mojave National Preserved had railroads along its southern and western edges and penetrating its very heart. Two of them were components of transcontinental railroad systems, one operating under six different names in its history, the other under three, and both of those continue to operate today. Three were essentially branch lines of one of the transcontinental systems, although the first two of those had began as separately inspired short lines. Another was a short line railroad wholly owned by a mining company that lasted for a quarter of a century. And two were little tiny industrial railways, easily overlooked in the shadow of greater enterprises. Altogether, the lands now within Mojave National Preserve played a role in the history of more railroads than those of any other unit of the National Park System, and with a double-tracked main line across the center of the Preserve and a former railroad depot, eating house and employees’ hotel as its principal visitor center, Mojave National Preserve and the history of American railroading are inextricably linked together.