A SPECIAL REPORT: TRAINS
OH, PLEEEEASE: Usually, the county was more prone to beg for railroads than refuse them. Near the turn of the century, Pacific City so wanted the Pacific Electric to come to town that it renamed itself Huntington Beach to flatter the railroad’s owner, Henry Huntington (son of Collis). . . . When the track reached Balboa, a hotel was built there in only 10 days to be ready for the first train. . . . A special fare took thousands of L.A. residents to Balboa on weekends, one of the most popular train rides in Southern California history.
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