The Roundhouse opened in May 1864 to service extra engines that trains needed on the 90-mile strain to the Sierra summit. It included 28 engine stalls, a turntable and a 78,000 square foot woodshed. In 1908, the railroad moved all roundhouse operations to Roseville and the Rocklin facility closed permanently. In its heyday, just prior to its move to Roseville, Rocklin's Roundhouse employed 300 people with a monthly payroll of $25 - $30,000. A report from the time asserts that, from1906 through 1908, while the roundhouse was closing, Rocklin's population declined b y 80%. This is probably an exaggeration since this was also a time when Rocklin's granite quarries were busy providing curbstone and granite blocks to re-build San Francisco after the earthquake of 1906.