Dangling from high above the intersection of B & Marsh Streets in Stockton's Fair Oaks district, an aging railroad crossing warning sign dating back to the early days of the Central California Traction Company gently sways in the late summer breeze on a relatively mild morning in the Central Valley.

While hundreds of motorists and pedestrians meander through the intersection daily, it's conceivable that few, if any, passersby even notice the senescent sign. Located strategically along critical street trackage crossroads in both Stockton and Sacramento, the suspended 'X' indication implied to townspeople that active railroad tracks crisscrossed a thoroughfare at grade when a roadside crossbuck mounted on a pole was either indiscernible or inadequate to perceive. Numerous historic snapshots show these unique signs earning their keep on the CCT as early as the 1930s, but it's certainly plausible they were around before that time.

Whether this sign has "hung on" deliberately at the behest of Traction Company management or just merely forgotten, this is yet another fine antique that has endured the test of time.

[www.flickr.com]