Laconia Railroad Station

Snoqualmie Pass, Washington

This historical photograph of the Laconia railroad yard, at the summit of Snoqualmie Pass, was photographed by 1911. An eastbound steam locomotive, of the Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway ( C. M. & P. S. Ry. ), can be seen on a siding just beyond the water tank. Also beyond the water tank, to the left, is the oil tank used to fill the tenders of oil-fired steam locomotives. The Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway was the Pacific Coast extension of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway. The name Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway lasted from only 1909 until 1912 at which time this Pacific Coast extension of the railroad also became known as the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway. The southeast shoulder of Denny Mountain can be seen in the background on the left side of the photograph. The upper end of the South Fork Snoqualmie River valley, where the Alpental ski area is now located, can be seen in the background on the right side of the photograph.

Click on map for a larger view

Laconia reappears as if from some faded layer of time in this composite photo map of Snoqualmie Pass, Washington, which shows an original 1913 survey map layered over a 2006 color orthophoto. The 1913 survey map shows the Laconia railroad yard of the Chicago, Milwaukee & Puget Sound Railway. Also identified are the turntable, engine house, water tank, depot, passing tracks, hotel, bunkhouse, and a couple houses. The survey stationing is for the original location of the Sunset Highway. The railroad bypassed Laconia when the long 2.3-mile Snoqualmie Tunnel, between Hyak and Rockdale, opened for regularly scheduled train service on January 15, 1915.

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