Dave Hinkle

"Rusty Rails in Paradise" is about the California Southern Railroad, its operational highs and lows, from its rocky start through its inglorius demise, and its several rebirths after a takeover and changes by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad. It's about the visionaries, the rail barons and their influence on railroad growth in the western United States, and it's about the railroad's effect on the areas where it traveled. Finally, it's about some of what remains today of the California Southern's rusty rails. We are not trying to attempt a history re-write or present a litany of historic facts but we do want to preserve the history of the California Southern Railroad, and all the persons, situations, growth and failures of those involved in its founding, construction, operation and the few remnants of what remain today, all of which had a great effect on the cities and towns we live in today.