[3]: 26, 66  The closure of these businesses in the early 1940s played a role in the railroad's decline, with the last regularly scheduled train running on August 24, 1945.

[4] The Southern Pacific's famous "Cannon-ball" stage from Raymond to Yosemite Valley was a marginally faster option, taking between twelve and fourteen hours to complete the trip.

The route began in the city of Merced, where connections were made with the Southern Pacific and Santa Fe railways, and extended 78 miles to El Portal.

Though several companies had shown interest in constructing a rail line, it was a group of Oakland and San Francisco financiers who obtained the right-of-way for the most feasible route.

[8] To equip the railroad, the company purchased two locomotives from the Northern Pacific, a steam shovel, and a small narrow gauge work engine.

The recruitment effort caused overcrowding in hotels and long lines at the employment office in Merced, prompting the company to expedite the hiring process with an arbitrary sign that read, "Bus leaves for camp each morning at 7 AM.

[3]: 11 The Yosemite Valley Railroad's first regularly scheduled train left from the Santa Fe depot, which was located six miles outside of town, on December 18, 1905.

[12] The entire roadbed for the Yosemite Valley Railroad was blasted out of solid rock, which required approximately 3,000,000 pounds of dynamite and powder and 285 miles of fuse.

[14] On May 15, 1907, the Yosemite Valley Railroad's first scheduled full-length run departed from Merced for El Portal, which was 80 miles away and had 12 passengers on board.

The four-story Hotel Del Portal at the eastern terminus attracted celebrities and politicians, including Senator Benjamin Tillman, Governor James Gillet, William Randolph Hearst, J.B. Duke, and John Muir.

In December 1907, the railroad added its first winter excursion, allowing visitors to easily access the park year-round for the first time.

[20] In 1910, the Yosemite Lumber Company was established, and the railroad played a crucial role in transporting the logs from the mountains to the sawmill at Merced Falls.

The 25-passenger White Motor Company buses completed the trip in one hour and thirty-five minutes, compared to the four-hour journey required by the old horse stages.

In 1916, the Yosemite Valley Railroad leased the Hotel Del Portal and the stage line to the Desmond Park Service Company.

[22] The new railroad brought increased visitation to the park, allowing the concessionaire to expand its offerings, including the luxurious Glacier Point Hotel built in 1917.

Despite growing competition from buses and automobiles, the railroad continued to draw in visitors, including world leaders like Prince Axel of Denmark and King Albert of Belgium who traveled in private rail cars.

The large number of Yosemite-bound specials, along with log trains running regularly to Merced Falls, allowed the railroad's payroll to grow to 350 employees.

[28] To keep up with the growing popularity of private automobiles, the YVRR started offering auto ferrying services, building special platforms at Merced and El Portal to load cars for the trip to the Valley and back.

This service proved especially popular with wealthy passengers and even attracted Hollywood movie stars, such as Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle, Mae West, Mary Pickford, and Doug Fairbanks.

At the same time, suspension of operations by the Yosemite Lumber Company in 1927 led to a fifty percent plunge in freight revenue.

[31] The railroad was re-incorporated and showed a small gross profit between 1935 and 1937, thanks to increased freight traffic due to the reopening of the lumber mill.

To recover, the railroad required rehabilitation loans from the Southern Pacific and the Santa Fe to get the line back into operation.

[34] Due to decreased revenue, the railroad reduced its staff and service in 1944, and the last run of the Yosemite Valley Railway took place in 1945.

[36] The film Color of a Brisk and Leaping Day is based on the Yosemite Valley Railroad and 23-year old John McFadden's failed attempt to save it.

Engineer Charlie Grant, who had a special attachment to Number 21, accompanied the locomotive to its new home on the Yosemite Valley Railroad, where he worked for 20 years before retiring with honors in 1926.

[38] Despite its age, Number 21 continued to operate until the 1930s before being put on standby service, making it one of the most enduring classic 4-4-0 locomotives in American railroading history.