I also determined that there was a large brick roundhouse right in the middle of the Mill Creek Valley just east of Compton Ave. The two Sanborn maps show the whole complex; for a sense of place, the little wood roundhouse is the same structure in both maps.
No traces of the roundhouses remain, and the entire area is now occupied by what I think was the Villa Lighting Warehouse.
Thanks for showing these maps, Chris.
ReplyDeleteIt's odd, knowing that my Grandfather (b.1870) drove his engines over these very tracks for many years.
He was a road engineer for the MOP from the late 1890s until his retirement in the mid-'30s.
He was recalled for the War, but mightily chafed as a "stinky diesel" switcher driver; he was not permitted on the road because of his age - then over 70.
Heck, he probably drove his switcher over these tracks as well!
Gpaw John was a large man with an immense walrus mustache and always wore a vest with a heavy chain and watch that seemingly weighed 5 pounds.