1965 Last Mail Train

May 20, 1965

UPDATE
Thanks to an assist from Bruce Petty with Los Angeles River Railroads we now have the correct date. According to a post on their website the Coast Mail was nicknamed Sad Sam.
The page also says mail trains were slower than others because of the time needed to load and unload mail and other items like milk and cream.
The U.S. Post Office abandoned rail delivery as they went to large processing facilities on highways away from the rails. Train 151 rolled northbound into the San Luis Obispo station about 7 A.M. ending a ritual started in 1895. Southern Pacific had frequent passenger rail service before they became strictly a freight hauler.
At right Railroader Al Mazza tosses a mail sack into the mail car.

1965 Paso Robles 13th St. Bridge

Paso Robles bottleneck
This old bridge across the Salinas River at 13th Street in Paso Robles has seen better days, but replacement of the 50-year-old structure awaits city council financing, an estimated $250,000 project. (T-T photo)

Having just lived through the traffic backups during an expansion of the 13th Street bridge, Roblans will no doubt have to reach back to remember a town that had a two lane bridge over the Salinas River. This was long before the Niblick Road bridge. The East side of town did not have as much development and it shows in the dearth of traffic. By 2002 the bridge needed expansion again as seen in the color photo.

1965 Yo-Yo

Yo-yo Champion
Scott Woolpert, San Luis Obispo, 10, won the Sidewinder Return Top Contest Saturday. He will represent San Luis Obispo in the Regional finals in Ventura on March 7.

February 9, 1965

Newspapers cover everything, from train wrecks to trivial trends. A lot of fads were foisted on children of the '60s, yo-yo's, hula hoops and frisbees. I recall a school assembly that included Yo-Yo Man who inspired me to go out and buy a new Duncan. Not sure what else I retained from education that year but I did learn to sleep, walk-the-dog and round-the-world. Never could master the baby cradle.
The blog photo is cropped a little wider to give a sense of place.
Scott, if you are still out there, how did it go in Ventura?