Former US 99 in Tipton, Tulare, and Tagus Ranch

[Max Rockatansky]

Yesterday I had a look at the former alignments of US Route 99 in the Central Tulare County communities of Tagus Ranch.  Tulare is of particular interest given the Tulare Bypass route of the Golden State Freeway was the first full limited access grade that was completed by Division of Highways District 6.  Notably a small part of the original crossing US Route 99 took over the Southern Pacific Railroad between Tipton and Tulare has managed to survive after the highway was realigned in 1932.  Regarding Tagus Ranch it seems that the private lands played a large part in why early Legislative Route 4 was aligned through Visalia en route to Goshen.  There is a lot to cover with Tipton, Tulare, and Tagus Ranch which can be found on the article link below:

https://www.gribblenation.org/2020/07/old-us-route-99-through-tipton-tulare.html

[M3100]

Notably a small part of the original crossing US Route 99 took over the Southern Pacific Railroad between Tipton and Tulare has managed to survive after the highway was realigned in 1932. 

Interesting history of that area, including the decades old road remnant you located.
Meanwhile, Visalia was just a bit to far east to end up on the SP RR and eventual US 99 alignment.

[Max Rockatansky]

Notably a small part of the original crossing US Route 99 took over the Southern Pacific Railroad between Tipton and Tulare has managed to survive after the highway was realigned in 1932. 

Interesting history of that area, including the decades old road remnant you located.
Meanwhile, Visalia was just a bit to far east to end up on the SP RR and eventual US 99 alignment.

It looks like that was a last minute change as it appears through Visalia even on the 1926 Rand McNally Map of California.  It kind of makes sense given Visalia is the County Seat and wasn't a massive detour even by the conventions of the time. 

[M3100]

Sure thing - I saw that in your write-up.  Still, I wonder if Visalia would be a larger city today has the main transportation arteries continued to pass through it?  Maybe...though Goshen never got that big, even though it's Visalia's neighbor on the main routes.

[Max Rockatansky]

Sure thing - I saw that in your write-up.  Still, I wonder if Visalia would be a larger city today has the main transportation arteries continued to pass through it?  Maybe...though Goshen never got that big, even though it's Visalia's neighbor on the main routes.

I really know if it would have made a difference, it seems as though Visalia was just destined to become a medium size city.  The last I looked the population was about 140,000 residents and it kind of feels like it's beginning to merge with Hanford given how much 198 has expanded the last couple decades.  The City Limit extends all the way west to 99 and I can't imagine that Goshen will be able to avoid being annexed forever.  If anything shifting 99 just brought more prominence to Legislative Route 10 and future CA 198. 

[sparker]

Sure thing - I saw that in your write-up.  Still, I wonder if Visalia would be a larger city today has the main transportation arteries continued to pass through it?  Maybe...though Goshen never got that big, even though it's Visalia's neighbor on the main routes.

I really know if it would have made a difference, it seems as though Visalia was just destined to become a medium size city.  The last I looked the population was about 140,000 residents and it kind of feels like it's beginning to merge with Hanford given how much 198 has expanded the last couple decades.  The City Limit extends all the way west to 99 and I can't imagine that Goshen will be able to avoid being annexed forever.  If anything shifting 99 just brought more prominence to Legislative Route 10 and future CA 198. 

What prominence Visalia has historically had stems from its central location along the old E-W SP "feeder" rail line that paralleled LRN 10/CA 198; it was a "icehouse town" where originally citrus production from the north and east would be cold-stored before loading onto PFE refrigerated cars (ice before WWII, freon-based cooling afterward).  Also, the Santa Fe had a similar "feeder line" that started in Corcoran, ran through Tulare before paralleling CA 63 N-S through central Visalia and terminating at the ATSF's "East Valley" line near Cutler.  Both SP and Santa Fe competed for the citrus traffic; both deployed trackside loaders that were used during the main harvest periods to get product more directly to the L.A. and San Francisco/Oakland markets without a "side trip" to the Visalia storage houses.  Eventually firms supplying equipment to the regional agricultural businesses located in Visalia, which expanded the town out to the point where it was the dominant city between Bakersfield and Fresno; not being on a major interregional highway or RR main line didn't seem to affect the city's growth (BTW, gleaned most of this info from RR info/documents and/or my relatives residing in the region).  Expanding its "hospitality corridor" (where many of the area's chain hotels are located) west along CA 198 to CA 99 (also serving the regional airport) occurred in the '60's along with expansion of the city boundaries for revenue purposes, but for the most part the majority of customers had a connection with the citrus business; US/CA 99 traffic has never provided more than a marginal customer base for local hotels.  But Visalia has reached and surpassed the 100K population mark without being directly on one of the state's major N-S arteries, so it seems to be doing quite well as is.  And in about 20 years there will be almost full "infill" between there and Hanford -- just like with Modesto and Manteca/Lathrop/Stockton further north; as population influx requires housing, the initial placement will be along existing connectors between the various town centers.  Goshen will either assert itself as a separate entity or, more likely, will eventually be just a "district" of that greater metro complex arrayed along CA 198. 

[Max Rockatansky]

Speaking of infill around Visalia that is already starting to happen without the boundaries of; 99, 198, 63, and 137.  If one follow 63/Mooney it gets really apparent from the commercial growth alone that Visalia-Tulare are essentially one metro area that has merged together.  The new Costco off of 43 and Lacey is driving growth in Hanford East.  In theory if a station for the HSR does get built between Hanford-Visalia it will spur some additional residential/commercial infill in it's immediate vicinity.