Niles Canyon
| Niles Canyon | |
| Alameda Canyon | |
| Valley | |
| Name origin: English | |
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | California |
| Region | Alameda County |
| Source | head |
| - location | at Sunol, California |
| - coordinates | 37°35′40″N 121°53′56″W / 37.59444°N 121.89889°W |
| Mouth | mouth |
| - location | at Niles, California |
| - elevation | 82 ft (25 m) |
| - coordinates | 37°34′50″N 121°57′55″W / 37.58056°N 121.96528°WCoordinates: 37°34′50″N 121°57′55″W / 37.58056°N 121.96528°W |
Niles Canyon is a canyon in the San Francisco Bay Area formed by Alameda Creek. The canyon is largely in an unincorporated area of Alameda County, while the western portion of the canyon lies within the city limits of Fremont and Union City. The stretch of State Route 84 known as Niles Canyon Road traverses the length of the canyon from the Niles district of Fremont to the unincorporated town of Sunol. Two railroads also follow the same route down the canyon from Sunol to Niles: the old Southern Pacific track along the north side, now the Niles Canyon Railway, and the newer Union Pacific (formerly the Western Pacific) track a little to the south. At the west end are the ruins of the Vallejo Flour Mill, which dates to 1856.
Essanay Film Manufacturing Company, an early motion picture company, had a studio located in Niles from 1912–1916 at the canyon's western mouth. The canyon was featured in many early films and it was here that Charlie Chaplin filmed one of his most iconic movies, The Tramp.
The route of El Camino Viejo à Los Angeles (Old Road to Los Angeles), the oldest north-south trail in the interior of Alta California, ran through Niles Canyon. In addition, the canyon was located in three different Mexican land grants - Rancho Arroyo de la Alameda, Rancho Ex-Mission San José, and Rancho Valle de San Jose.
...
Wikipedia