Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Encyclopedia
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge
line running south from Denver, Colorado
in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental
bridge line
between Denver, and Salt Lake City, Utah
. The Rio Grande was also a major origin of coal
and mineral traffic.
In 1988, the Rio Grande's parent corporation, Rio Grande Industries
, purchased Southern Pacific Transportation Company, and as the result of a merger, the larger Southern Pacific Railroad name was chosen for identity. Today, most former D&RGW main lines are owned and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad
; several branch lines are now operated as heritage railway
s by various companies.
The Rio Grande was the epitome of mountain railroading, with a motto of Through the Rockies, not around them and later Main line through the Rockies, both referring to the Rocky Mountains
.
The D&RGW operated the highest mainline rail line in the United States
, over the 10240 feet (3,121.2 m) Tennessee Pass
in Colorado
, and the famed routes through the Moffat Tunnel
and the Royal Gorge
. At its height, around 1890, the D&RG had the largest operating narrow gauge railroad network in North America
. Known for its independence, the D&RGW operated the last private intercity passenger train in the United States, the Rio Grande Zephyr
.
and a board of four directors. It was originally announced that the new gauge railroad would proceed south from Denver
and travel an estimated 875 miles (1,408.2 km) south to El Paso via Pueblo, westward along the Arkansas River, and continue southward through the San Luis Valley of Colorado toward the Rio Grande River. Closely assisted by his friend and new business partner Dr. William Bell
, Palmer's new "Baby Road" laid the first rails out of Denver on July 28, 1871. Narrow gauge was chosen in part because construction and equipment costs would be relatively more affordable when weighed against that of the prevailing standard gauge
. Palmer's first hand impressions of the Ffestiniog Railway
in Wales bouyed his interest in the narrow gauge concept which would prove to be advantageous while conquering the mountainous regions of the Southwest. Eventually, the route of the D&RG would be amended (including a plan to continue south from Pueblo over Raton Pass) and added to as new opportunities and competition challenged the railroad's expanding goals.
Feverish, competitive construction plans provoked the 1877–1880 war
over right of way with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
. Both rivals hired gunslingers and bought politicians while courts intervened to bring settlement to the disagreements. One anecdote of the conflict recounts June 1879 when the Santa Fe defended its roundhouse in Pueblo
with Dodge City
toughs led by Bat Masterson
; on that occasion, D&RG treasurer R. F. Weitbrec paid the defenders to leave. In March of 1880, a Boston Court granted the AT&SF the rights to Raton Pass, while the D&RG paid an exorbitant $
1.4 million for the trackage extending through the Arkansas River
's Royal Gorge
. The D&RG's possession of this route allowed quick access to the booming mining district of Leadville, Colorado
. While this "Treaty of Boston" did not exactly favor the purist of original D&RG intentions, the conquering of new mining settlements to the west and the future opportunity to expand into Utah was realized from this settlement
By late 1880, William Bell, had already begun to organize railway construction in Utah that would become the Palmer controlled Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway
in mid 1881. The intention of the D&RGW (aka the "Western") was to work eastward from Provo to an eventual link with westward bound D&RG in Colorado. This physical connection was realized near Green River, Utah
on March 30, 1883, and by May of that year the D&RG formally leased its Utah subsidiary as previously planned. By mid 1883, financial difficulties due to aggressive growth and expenditures led to a shake up among the D&RG board of directors, and General Palmer resigned as president of the D&RG in August of 1883, while retaining that position with the Western. Frederick Lovejoy would soon fill Palmer's vacated seat on the D&RG, the first in a succession of post Palmer presidents that would attempt to direct the railroad through future struggles and successes. Following bitter conflict with the Rio Grande Western during lease disagreements and continued financial struggles, the D&RG went into receivership in July of 1884 with court appointed receiver William S. Jackson in control. Eventual foreclosure and sale of the original Denver and Rio Grande Railway resulted within two years and the new Denver and Rio Grande Railroad took formal control of the property and holdings on July 14, 1886 with Jackson appointed as president. General Palmer would continue as president of the Utah line until retirement (due to company re-organization) in 1901.
The D&RG built west from Pueblo reaching Cañon City
in 1874. The line through the Royal Gorge
reached Salida
on May 20, 1880 and was pushed to Leadville later that same year. From Salida, the D&RG pushed west over the Continental Divide
at the 10845 feet (3,305.6 m) Marshall Pass
and reached Gunnison
on August 6, 1881. From Gunnison the line entered the Black Canyon
of the Gunnison River
passing the famous Curecanti Needle
seen in their famous Scenic Line of the World Herald. The tracks left the increasingly difficult canyon at Cimmaron
and passed over Cerro Summit, reaching Montrose
on September 8, 1882. From Montrose, a line was laid north through Delta
, reaching Grand Junction
in March 1883, which completed a narrow gauge transcontinental link with the Rio Grande Western Railway to Salt Lake City, Utah
.
The line from Pueblo to Leadville was upgraded in 1887 to three rails
to accommodate both narrow gauge and standard gauge
operation.
Narrow gauge branch lines were constructed to Crested Butte
, Lake City
, Ouray
and Somerset
.
The route over Tennessee Pass was known for steep grades, and it wasn't uncommon to see trains running with midtrain and rear-end helpers. In 1997, a year after the D&RGW/SP merger with Union Pacific, the UP closed the line. Although it has been out of service for fourteen years, the rails are still in usable condition, though the signals have been sabotaged. In 1998, Union Pacifc sold 12 miles (19.3 km) of the route's track through the Royal Gorge in an effort to preserve the scenic route. Two new corporations, the Canon City & Royal Gorge Railroad (CC&RG) and Rock & Rail, Inc. (R&R), joined together to form Royal Gorge Express, LLC (RGX) to purchase the line. Passenger service on the new Royal Gorge Route Railroad began in May 1999. The Royal Gorge Route Railroad
operates trains on their 12-miles of track through the Royal Gorge year-round, from Canon City to Parkdale. The Railroad is a heritage railway
. Apart from this stretch of track, and the odd Hi-Rail inspections between Parkdale and Dotsero, the Tennessee Pass subdivision has been out of service.
over Veta Pass (now "Old La Veta Pass") by 1877. At the time the 'Uptop' depot on Veta Pass, rising over 9500 feet (2,895.6 m) in elevation, boasted the highest elevation for a narrow gauge railroad. The railroad reached Alamosa
by 1878. From Alamosa, a line was pushed south through Antonito
eventually reaching Santa Fe, New Mexico
(the Chili Line
) and west as far as Creede, Colorado
. A line containing one of the longest tangent tracks in U.S. railroading (52.82 miles or 85 km) also linked Alamosa with Salida
to the north. From Antonito a line was built over 10015 feet (3,052.6 m) Cumbres Pass
, along the Colorado
-New Mexico
border, reaching Durango, Colorado
in August 1881 and continuing north to the rich mining areas around Silverton
in July 1882. A line was also constructed in 1902 as a standard gauge line, perhaps in anticipation of possible standard gauging
of the entire line, south from Durango, Colorado to Farmington, New Mexico
. Originally hauling mainly agricultural products and serving as a deterrent to the Santa Fe building up from the south, the line was converted
to narrow gauge in 1926, and later delivered pipe and other construction materials to the local oil and natural gas industry into the 1960s.
Today, the Walsenburg-Alamosa-Antonito line survives as the standard gauge
San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad
, with passenger excursion trains service provided by the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
. Two narrow gauge
segments survive as steam railroads
, the Antonito-Chama line as the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
and Durango-Silverton as the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
.
in an attempt to reach the mining areas around Aspen, Colorado
before its rival railroad in the area, the Colorado Midland, could build a line reaching there. The D&RG built a line through Glenwood Canyon
to Glenwood Springs, reaching Aspen in October 1887. The D&RG then joined with the Colorado Midland to build a line from Glenwood Springs connecting with D&RG at Grand Junction. Originally considered a secondary branch route to Grand Junction, the entire route from Leadville to Grand Junction was upgraded to standard gauge in 1890, and the original narrow gauge route via Marshall Pass became a secondary route.
The original Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway built a narrow gauge line from Ogden, Utah
via Soldier Summit, Utah
to Grand Junction, Colorado
. The railroad became the Rio Grande Western Railway in 1889 as part of a finance plan to upgrade the line from narrow gauge to standard gauge, and built several branch lines in Utah to reach lucrative coal fields. It was the railway which Gustaf Nordenskiöld
employed to haul boxcars of relics from the Mesa Verde, Colorado, cliff dwellings, in 1891, en route to the National Museum of Finland
. In 1901, the Denver and Rio Grande merged with the Rio Grande Western, consolidating in 1908. However, the railroad was weakened by speculators, who had used the Rio Grande's equity to finance Western Pacific Railroad
construction. The United States Railroad Administration
(USRA) took over the D&RG during World War I
. In 1918 the D&RG fell into receivership after the bankruptcy of Western Pacific. The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW or DRGW) was incorporated in 1920, and formally emerged as the new re-organization of the old Denver and Rio Grande Railroad on July 31, 1921.
In 1931, the D&RGW acquired the Denver and Salt Lake Western Railroad (a company in name only), a subsidiary of the Denver and Salt Lake Railroad (D&SL) which had acquired the rights to build a 40 miles (64.4 km) connection between the two railroads. After years of negotiation, the D&RGW gained trackage rights on the D&SL from Denver to the new cutoff. In 1932, the D&RGW began construction of the Dotsero Cutoff east of Glenwood Springs to near Bond
on the Colorado River
, at a location called Orestod (Dotsero spelled backward). Despite the common misconception that Dotsero is a shortening of "Dot Zero," the station name exists from the construction of the standard gauge line to Glenwood Springs in the 1890s. Construction was completed in 1934, giving Denver
a direct transcontinental link to the west. The D&RGW slipped into bankruptcy again in 1935. Emerging in 1947, it merged with the D&SL on March 3, 1947, gaining control of the "Moffat Road" through the Moffat Tunnel
and a branch line from Bond to Craig, Colorado
.
Finally free from financial problems, the D&RGW now possessed a direct route from Denver to Salt Lake City (the detour south through Pueblo and Tennessee Pass was no longer required for direct service), but a problem still remained: for transcontinental service, the Union Pacific
's more northerly line was far less mountainous (and, as a result, several hours faster). The D&RGW's solution was its "fast freight" philosophy, which employed multiple diesel locomotives pulling short, frequent trains. This philosophy helps to explain why the D&RGW, despite its proximity to one of the nation's most productive coal
mining regions, retired coal-fueled steam locomotive
s as quickly as new, replacement diesels could be purchased. By 1956, the D&RGW's standard-gauge steam locomotives had been retired and scrapped. The reason for this was that unlike steam locomotives, diesel locomotives could easily be combined, using the diesels' multiple unit
(MU) capabilities, to equip each train with the optimum horsepower which was needed to meet the D&RGW's aggressive schedule.
The D&RGW's sense of its unique geographical challenge found expression in what is arguably the world's most famous passenger train, the California Zephyr
, which was jointly operated with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
(CB&Q) from Chicago to Denver and the Western Pacific Railroad
from Salt Lake City to Oakland
, California (with ferry and bus connections to San Francisco
). Unable to compete with the Union Pacific's faster, less mountainous route and 39-hour schedules, the California Zephyr offered a more leisurely journey – a "rail cruise" – with ample vistas of the Rockies. Although the California Zephyr ran at full capacity and turned a modest profit from its 1949 inception through the late 1950s, by the mid-1960s the train was profitable only during the late spring, summer, and fall. In 1970, Western Pacific, claiming multi-million dollar losses, dropped out. However, the D&RGW refused to join the national Amtrak
system, and continued to operate its share of the Zephyr equipment as the Rio Grande Zephyr
between Denver and Salt Lake City until 1983.
Even as the D&RGW exploited the best new standard-gauge technology to compete with other transcontinental carriers, the railroad continued to operate the surviving steam-powered narrow gauge lines, including the famed narrow gauge line between Durango
and Silverton, Colorado
. Most of the remaining narrow-gauge trackage was abandoned in the 1950s and 1960s. Two of the most scenic routes survived in operation by the D&RGW, until they were sold to tourist railroad operators. The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
assumed operation of the line between Antonito, Colorado
and Chama, New Mexico
in 1970. The last D&RGW narrow gauge line, from Durango to Silverton, was sold in 1981 to the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
, exactly one hundred years after the line went into operation.
, the company that controlled the D&RGW under the direction of Philip Anschutz
, purchased the Southern Pacific Railroad
. The combined company used Southern Pacific's name due to its name recognition among shippers. In time, the Rio Grande's fast freight philosophy gave way to SP's long-established practice of running long, slow trains. A contributing factor was the rising cost of diesel fuel, a trend that set in after the 1973 oil crisis
, which gradually undermined the D&RGW's fuel-consuming "fast freight" philosophy. By the early 1990s, the combined Rio Grande/Southern Pacific Railroad had lost much of the competitive advantage that made it attractive to transcontinental shippers, and became largely dependent on hauling the high-quality coal produced in the mine fields of Colorado and Utah.
D&RGW locomotives retained their reporting marks and colors after the merger with Southern Pacific. The one noticeable change was to Southern Pacific's "Bloody Nose" paint scheme - the serif font on the sides of the locomotives was replaced by the Rio Grande's "speed lettering", which was utilized on all SP locomotives built after the merger.
, partly in response to the earlier merger of Burlington Northern
and Santa Fe
which formed the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway. As the Union Pacific absorbed the D&RGW into its system, signs of the fabled mountain railroad's existence are slowly fading away. D&RGW 5371, the only original D&RGW locomotive in full Rio Grande paint on the Union Pacific, was retired by UP in December, 2008. As previously promised by UP, the D&RGW 5371 was donated to the Utah State Railroad Museum at Ogden's Union Station on August 17, 2009, and will reside in the Eccles Rail Center at the south end of the building. The museum is located at 25th Street and Wall Ave in Ogden, Utah. Many other Rio Grande locomotives still run in service with Union Pacific, but have been "patch-renumbered," with a patch applied over the locomotive's number and the number boards replaced. This method allows the locomotives to be numbered into the Union Pacific's roster but is cheaper than fully repainting the engine into UP Armour Yellow.
Union Pacific recently unveiled UP 1989, an EMD SD70ACe painted in a stylized version of the DRGW color scheme. This unit is one of several SD70ACe locomotives the UP has painted in stylized colors to help preserve the image of the railroads it has merged; the others are Missouri Pacific Railroad
, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad
, Chicago and North Western Railway
, Southern Pacific Railroad
, and Western Pacific Railroad
.
Other named passenger trains operated by the Rio Grande included the Colorado Eagle (operated in conjunction with the Missouri Pacific Railroad
between St. Louis and Denver), Panoramic (between Ogden and Denver), Royal Gorge (between Denver, Pueblo, and Ogden), and the Yampa Valley (between Denver and Craig, Colorado). From 1940 to 2009 the Ski Train
connected Denver with Winter Park, Colorado
. This started as a D&RGW train but was bought by the Ansco Investment Company in 1988, then re-sold to Canada in 2009.
Note that the San Juan Express
earlier was called the Colorado and New Mexico Express, and express passenger service had been offered between Alamosa and Durango since shortly after the line was completed in 1881. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad now operates scenic trips over this route between Antonito, Colorado and Chama, New Mexico.
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
, which has been operating since 1881, provides scenic day trips from Durango to Silverton.
The largest collection of surviving California Zephyr
equipment can be found at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum
at Portola, California
, although this museum focuses on the Western Pacific Railroad
, rather than the Rio Grande. Several items of DRGW owned Zephyr rolling stock still survive in private hands.
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
line running south from Denver, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental
Transcontinental railroad
A transcontinental railroad is a contiguous network of railroad trackage that crosses a continental land mass with terminals at different oceans or continental borders. Such networks can be via the tracks of either a single railroad, or over those owned or controlled by multiple railway companies...
bridge line
Bridge line
A bridge line or bridge route is a rail carrier tasked primarily with moving traffic from one major carrier to another . Bridge lines often were located between two major cities, connecting rail carriers that served those cities and interchanging their cars...
between Denver, and Salt Lake City, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. The Rio Grande was also a major origin of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and mineral traffic.
In 1988, the Rio Grande's parent corporation, Rio Grande Industries
Rio Grande Industries
Rio Grande Industries was the diversified parent company, headquartered in Denver, of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. Formed in 1968, its non-railroad operations included construction, real estate, and energy units...
, purchased Southern Pacific Transportation Company, and as the result of a merger, the larger Southern Pacific Railroad name was chosen for identity. Today, most former D&RGW main lines are owned and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
; several branch lines are now operated as heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
s by various companies.
The Rio Grande was the epitome of mountain railroading, with a motto of Through the Rockies, not around them and later Main line through the Rockies, both referring to the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
The D&RGW operated the highest mainline rail line in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, over the 10240 feet (3,121.2 m) Tennessee Pass
Tennessee Pass (Colorado)
Tennessee Pass elevation is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado in the United States.The pass traverses the continental divide north of Leadville in a gap between the northern end of the Sawatch Range to the west and the northern end of the Mosquito Range to the east...
in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, and the famed routes through the Moffat Tunnel
Moffat Tunnel
The Moffat Tunnel is a railroad and water tunnel that cuts through the Continental Divide in north-central Colorado. Named after Colorado railroad pioneer David Moffat, the tunnel's first railroad traffic passed through in February 1928....
and the Royal Gorge
Royal Gorge
The Royal Gorge is a canyon on the Arkansas River near Cañon City, Colorado. With a width of at its base and a few hundred feet at its top, and a depth of in places, the 10-mile-long canyon is a narrow, steep gorge through the granite of Fremont Peak...
. At its height, around 1890, the D&RG had the largest operating narrow gauge railroad network in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
. Known for its independence, the D&RGW operated the last private intercity passenger train in the United States, the Rio Grande Zephyr
Rio Grande Zephyr
The Rio Grande Zephyr was a passenger train operated by Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad between Denver, Colorado and Ogden, Utah in the Western United States. It operated from 1970 until 1983...
.
History
Overview
The Denver and Rio Grande Railway (D&RG) was incorporated on October 27, 1870 by General William Jackson PalmerWilliam Jackson Palmer
William Jackson Palmer was an American civil engineer, soldier, industrialist, and philanthropist.-Overview:...
and a board of four directors. It was originally announced that the new gauge railroad would proceed south from Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
and travel an estimated 875 miles (1,408.2 km) south to El Paso via Pueblo, westward along the Arkansas River, and continue southward through the San Luis Valley of Colorado toward the Rio Grande River. Closely assisted by his friend and new business partner Dr. William Bell
William Bell (city founder)
Dr. William Bell was a physician and the founder of Manitou Springs, Colorado.In 1867, Bell left London for Saint Louis, Missouri to Saratoga Springs, New York to attend a series of lectures on the medical principles of homeopathy...
, Palmer's new "Baby Road" laid the first rails out of Denver on July 28, 1871. Narrow gauge was chosen in part because construction and equipment costs would be relatively more affordable when weighed against that of the prevailing standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
. Palmer's first hand impressions of the Ffestiniog Railway
Ffestiniog Railway
The Ffestiniog Railway is a narrow gauge heritage railway, located in Gwynedd, Wales. It is a major tourist attraction located mainly within the Snowdonia National Park....
in Wales bouyed his interest in the narrow gauge concept which would prove to be advantageous while conquering the mountainous regions of the Southwest. Eventually, the route of the D&RG would be amended (including a plan to continue south from Pueblo over Raton Pass) and added to as new opportunities and competition challenged the railroad's expanding goals.
Feverish, competitive construction plans provoked the 1877–1880 war
Railroad Wars
The Railroad Wars were a series of conflicts between two competing railroads in the Old West of the late 1870s.In 1878, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway and the smaller Denver and Rio Grande were competing to put the first line through Raton Pass. Both railroads had extended lines into...
over right of way with the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
. Both rivals hired gunslingers and bought politicians while courts intervened to bring settlement to the disagreements. One anecdote of the conflict recounts June 1879 when the Santa Fe defended its roundhouse in Pueblo
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....
with Dodge City
Dodge City, Kansas
Dodge City is a city in, and the county seat of, Ford County, Kansas, United States. Named after nearby Fort Dodge, the city is famous in American culture for its history as a wild frontier town of the Old West. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,340.-History:The first settlement of...
toughs led by Bat Masterson
Bat Masterson
William Barclay "Bat" Masterson was a figure of the American Old West known as a buffalo hunter, U.S. Marshal and Army scout, avid fisherman, gambler, frontier lawman, and sports editor and columnist for the New York Morning Telegraph...
; on that occasion, D&RG treasurer R. F. Weitbrec paid the defenders to leave. In March of 1880, a Boston Court granted the AT&SF the rights to Raton Pass, while the D&RG paid an exorbitant $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1.4 million for the trackage extending through the Arkansas River
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
's Royal Gorge
Royal Gorge
The Royal Gorge is a canyon on the Arkansas River near Cañon City, Colorado. With a width of at its base and a few hundred feet at its top, and a depth of in places, the 10-mile-long canyon is a narrow, steep gorge through the granite of Fremont Peak...
. The D&RG's possession of this route allowed quick access to the booming mining district of Leadville, Colorado
Leadville, Colorado
Leadville is a Statutory City that is the county seat of, and the only municipality in, Lake County, Colorado, United States. Situated at an elevation of , Leadville is the highest incorporated city and the second highest incorporated municipality in the United States...
. While this "Treaty of Boston" did not exactly favor the purist of original D&RG intentions, the conquering of new mining settlements to the west and the future opportunity to expand into Utah was realized from this settlement
By late 1880, William Bell, had already begun to organize railway construction in Utah that would become the Palmer controlled Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway
Utah Division (D&RGW)
The Utah Division of the former Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad is a rail line that connects Grand Junction, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah in the Western United States. It is now incorporated into the Union Pacific Railroad system as its Green River and Provo Subdivisions, forming a...
in mid 1881. The intention of the D&RGW (aka the "Western") was to work eastward from Provo to an eventual link with westward bound D&RG in Colorado. This physical connection was realized near Green River, Utah
Green River, Utah
Green River is a city in Emery County, Utah, United States. The population was 973 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Green River is located at , on the banks of the Green River, after which the city is named. The San Rafael Swell region is to the west of Green River, while Canyonlands National Park...
on March 30, 1883, and by May of that year the D&RG formally leased its Utah subsidiary as previously planned. By mid 1883, financial difficulties due to aggressive growth and expenditures led to a shake up among the D&RG board of directors, and General Palmer resigned as president of the D&RG in August of 1883, while retaining that position with the Western. Frederick Lovejoy would soon fill Palmer's vacated seat on the D&RG, the first in a succession of post Palmer presidents that would attempt to direct the railroad through future struggles and successes. Following bitter conflict with the Rio Grande Western during lease disagreements and continued financial struggles, the D&RG went into receivership in July of 1884 with court appointed receiver William S. Jackson in control. Eventual foreclosure and sale of the original Denver and Rio Grande Railway resulted within two years and the new Denver and Rio Grande Railroad took formal control of the property and holdings on July 14, 1886 with Jackson appointed as president. General Palmer would continue as president of the Utah line until retirement (due to company re-organization) in 1901.
Royal Gorge Route
Cañon City, Colorado
The City of Cañon City is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Fremont County, State of Colorado. The United States Census Bureau estimated that the city population was 16,000 in 2005. Cañon City is noted for being the location of nine state and four ...
in 1874. The line through the Royal Gorge
Royal Gorge
The Royal Gorge is a canyon on the Arkansas River near Cañon City, Colorado. With a width of at its base and a few hundred feet at its top, and a depth of in places, the 10-mile-long canyon is a narrow, steep gorge through the granite of Fremont Peak...
reached Salida
Salida, Colorado
The City of Salida is a Statutory City that is the county seat and most populous city of Chaffee County, Colorado, United States. The population was 5,504 at the U.S. Census 2000.-History:800px|thumb|left| Panoramic View of Salida, 1910...
on May 20, 1880 and was pushed to Leadville later that same year. From Salida, the D&RG pushed west over the Continental Divide
Continental Divide
The Continental Divide of the Americas, or merely the Continental Gulf of Division or Great Divide, is the name given to the principal, and largely mountainous, hydrological divide of the Americas that separates the watersheds that drain into the Pacific Ocean from those river systems that drain...
at the 10845 feet (3,305.6 m) Marshall Pass
Marshall Pass
Marshall Pass is between Salida and Gunnison at the Continental Divide. Marshall Pass was discovered by, and named for, Lt. William L. Marshall of the Wheeler Survey in 1873...
and reached Gunnison
Gunnison, Colorado
The historic City of Gunnison, a Home Rule Municipality, is the county seat and the most populous city of Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 5,854. It was named in honor of John W...
on August 6, 1881. From Gunnison the line entered the Black Canyon
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
thumb|upright|Black Canyon of the GunnisonBlack Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is a United States National Park located in western Colorado, and managed by the National Park Service...
of the Gunnison River
Gunnison River
The Gunnison River is a tributary of the Colorado River, long, in the Southwest state of Colorado. It is the fifth largest tributary of the Colorado River, with a mean flow of 4320 ft³/s .-Description:...
passing the famous Curecanti Needle
Curecanti Needle
The Curecanti Needle is a distinct granite rock formation near Curicante, Colorado. Rising approximately 215 m or 700 ft from the canyon floor, with its pointy shape and being situated on the shore of the former Gunnison River it is one of the landmarks of the Colorado Rocky Mountains.Until...
seen in their famous Scenic Line of the World Herald. The tracks left the increasingly difficult canyon at Cimmaron
Cimarron, Colorado
Cimarron is an unincorporated town and U.S. Post Office in Montrose County, Colorado, United States. The Cimarron Post Office has the ZIP Code 81220....
and passed over Cerro Summit, reaching Montrose
Montrose, Colorado
The City of Montrose is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Montrose County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 15,479 in 2005. The main road that leads in and out of Montrose is U.S...
on September 8, 1882. From Montrose, a line was laid north through Delta
Delta, Colorado
The City of Delta is the county seat and the most populous city of Delta County, Colorado, United States. The population was 8,915 at the 2010 census...
, reaching Grand Junction
Grand Junction, Colorado
The City of Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado. It is a city with a council–manager government form that is the county seat and the most populous city of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Grand Junction is situated west-southwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. As...
in March 1883, which completed a narrow gauge transcontinental link with the Rio Grande Western Railway to Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
.
The line from Pueblo to Leadville was upgraded in 1887 to three rails
Dual gauge
A dual-gauge or mixed-gauge railway has railway track that allows trains of different gauges to use the same track. Generally, a dual-gauge railway consists of three rails, rather than the standard two rails. The two outer rails give the wider gauge, while one of the outer rails and the inner rail...
to accommodate both narrow gauge and standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
operation.
Narrow gauge branch lines were constructed to Crested Butte
Crested Butte, Colorado
Crested Butte is a Home Rule Municipality in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. A former coal mining town now called "the last great Colorado ski town," Crested Butte is a destination for skiing, mountain biking, and a variety of other outdoor activities...
, Lake City
Lake City, Colorado
The Town of Lake City is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, Hinsdale County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 375 at the U.S. Census 2000...
, Ouray
Ouray, Colorado
The historic City of Ouray is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Ouray County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 813 at the U.S. Census 2000 and 1,000 as of the U.S. Census 2010...
and Somerset
Somerset, Colorado
Somerset is an unincorporated mining town town and a U.S. Post Office located in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. The Somerset Post Office has the ZIP Code 81434.- Geography :Somerset is located at ....
.
The route over Tennessee Pass was known for steep grades, and it wasn't uncommon to see trains running with midtrain and rear-end helpers. In 1997, a year after the D&RGW/SP merger with Union Pacific, the UP closed the line. Although it has been out of service for fourteen years, the rails are still in usable condition, though the signals have been sabotaged. In 1998, Union Pacifc sold 12 miles (19.3 km) of the route's track through the Royal Gorge in an effort to preserve the scenic route. Two new corporations, the Canon City & Royal Gorge Railroad (CC&RG) and Rock & Rail, Inc. (R&R), joined together to form Royal Gorge Express, LLC (RGX) to purchase the line. Passenger service on the new Royal Gorge Route Railroad began in May 1999. The Royal Gorge Route Railroad
Royal Gorge Route Railroad
The Royal Gorge Route Railroad is a heritage railroad located in Cañon City, Colorado. The railroad transits the Royal Gorge on a 2-hour scenic and historic train ride along what is considered to be the most famous portion of the former Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad...
operates trains on their 12-miles of track through the Royal Gorge year-round, from Canon City to Parkdale. The Railroad is a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
. Apart from this stretch of track, and the odd Hi-Rail inspections between Parkdale and Dotsero, the Tennessee Pass subdivision has been out of service.
San Juan Extension
The D&RG also pushed west from Walsenburg, ColoradoWalsenburg, Colorado
The City of Walsenburg or Los Leones is a Statutory City that is the county seat and the most populous city of Huerfano County, Colorado, United States...
over Veta Pass (now "Old La Veta Pass") by 1877. At the time the 'Uptop' depot on Veta Pass, rising over 9500 feet (2,895.6 m) in elevation, boasted the highest elevation for a narrow gauge railroad. The railroad reached Alamosa
Alamosa, Colorado
The city of Alamosa is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Alamosa County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 8,682 in 2005...
by 1878. From Alamosa, a line was pushed south through Antonito
Antonito, Colorado
The Town of Antonito is a statutory town located in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town's population was 873.-Geography:...
eventually reaching Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
(the Chili Line
Chili Line
The Chili Line, officially known as the Santa Fe Branch, was a narrow gauge branch of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad . It ran from Antonito, Colorado, to Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States...
) and west as far as Creede, Colorado
Creede, Colorado
The historic town of Creede is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, Mineral County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 377 at the U.S. Census 2000.-History:...
. A line containing one of the longest tangent tracks in U.S. railroading (52.82 miles or 85 km) also linked Alamosa with Salida
Salida
Salida may refer to some places in the United States:* Salida, California* Salida, Colorado...
to the north. From Antonito a line was built over 10015 feet (3,052.6 m) Cumbres Pass
Cumbres Pass
Cumbres Pass, elevation , is a mountain pass in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. The pass is traversed by State Highway 17 and the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad. The highway has a moderate 5.8% approach on the north side and a gentler, 4% approach on the south side...
, along the Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
-New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
border, reaching Durango, Colorado
Durango, Colorado
The City of Durango is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of La Plata County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau said that the city population was 16,887 in 2010 census.-History:...
in August 1881 and continuing north to the rich mining areas around Silverton
Silverton, Colorado
The town of Silverton is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, San Juan County, Colorado, United States. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District,...
in July 1882. A line was also constructed in 1902 as a standard gauge line, perhaps in anticipation of possible standard gauging
Gauge conversion
In rail transport, gauge conversion is the process of converting a railway from one rail gauge to another, through the alteration of the railway tracks...
of the entire line, south from Durango, Colorado to Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington, New Mexico
Farmington is a city in San Juan County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2010 U.S. Census the city had a total population of 45,877 people. Farmington makes up one of the four Metropolitan Statistical Areas in New Mexico. The U.S...
. Originally hauling mainly agricultural products and serving as a deterrent to the Santa Fe building up from the south, the line was converted
Gauge conversion
In rail transport, gauge conversion is the process of converting a railway from one rail gauge to another, through the alteration of the railway tracks...
to narrow gauge in 1926, and later delivered pipe and other construction materials to the local oil and natural gas industry into the 1960s.
Today, the Walsenburg-Alamosa-Antonito line survives as the standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad
San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad
The San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad is a class III railroad operating in Colorado.The SLRG began operations in 2003 using 154 miles of former Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad tracks on three lines radiating from Alamosa, Colorado. The SLRG operates an eclectic variety of equipment from the...
, with passenger excursion trains service provided by the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
The Rio Grande Scenic Railroad of Colorado, a heritage railway, began operations in 2006, operating both steam and diesel locomotives in the San Luis Valley. Located south of Denver, Colorado, the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad operates out of Alamosa, Monte Vista and La Veta...
. Two narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
segments survive as steam railroads
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
, the Antonito-Chama line as the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad is a narrow gauge heritage railroad running between Chama, New Mexico and Antonito, Colorado. It runs over the Cumbres Pass, the highest point on a US passenger railway....
and Durango-Silverton as the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is a narrow gauge heritage railroad that operates of track between Durango and Silverton, in the US state of Colorado...
.
Tennessee Pass
The D&RG built west from Leadville over 10240 feet (3,121.2 m) Tennessee PassTennessee Pass (Colorado)
Tennessee Pass elevation is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado in the United States.The pass traverses the continental divide north of Leadville in a gap between the northern end of the Sawatch Range to the west and the northern end of the Mosquito Range to the east...
in an attempt to reach the mining areas around Aspen, Colorado
Aspen, Colorado
The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...
before its rival railroad in the area, the Colorado Midland, could build a line reaching there. The D&RG built a line through Glenwood Canyon
Glenwood Canyon
Glenwood Canyon is a rugged scenic canyon on the Colorado River in western Colorado in the United States. Its canyon walls climb as high as above the Colorado River. It is the largest such canyon on the Upper Colorado...
to Glenwood Springs, reaching Aspen in October 1887. The D&RG then joined with the Colorado Midland to build a line from Glenwood Springs connecting with D&RG at Grand Junction. Originally considered a secondary branch route to Grand Junction, the entire route from Leadville to Grand Junction was upgraded to standard gauge in 1890, and the original narrow gauge route via Marshall Pass became a secondary route.
Denver and Rio Grande Western
The original Denver and Rio Grande Western Railway built a narrow gauge line from Ogden, Utah
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
via Soldier Summit, Utah
Soldier Summit, Utah
Soldier Summit is the name of both a mountain pass in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah and a ghost town located at the pass. Soldier Summit has been an important transportation route between the Wasatch Front and Price, Utah since the area was settled by the Mormon pioneers. It is on the route of both...
to Grand Junction, Colorado
Grand Junction, Colorado
The City of Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado. It is a city with a council–manager government form that is the county seat and the most populous city of Mesa County, Colorado, United States. Grand Junction is situated west-southwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. As...
. The railroad became the Rio Grande Western Railway in 1889 as part of a finance plan to upgrade the line from narrow gauge to standard gauge, and built several branch lines in Utah to reach lucrative coal fields. It was the railway which Gustaf Nordenskiöld
Gustaf Nordenskiöld
Gustaf Nordenskiöld , Swedish scholar of Finnish descent, a member of the Nordenskiöld family of scientists and the eldest son of polar explorer Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld and Anna Maria Mannerheim...
employed to haul boxcars of relics from the Mesa Verde, Colorado, cliff dwellings, in 1891, en route to the National Museum of Finland
National Museum of Finland
The National Museum of Finland presents Finnish history from the Stone Age to the present day, through objects and cultural history. The Finnish National Romantic style building is located in central Helsinki and operates in collaboration with the National Board of Antiquities , an association...
. In 1901, the Denver and Rio Grande merged with the Rio Grande Western, consolidating in 1908. However, the railroad was weakened by speculators, who had used the Rio Grande's equity to finance Western Pacific Railroad
Western Pacific Railroad
The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
construction. The United States Railroad Administration
United States Railroad Administration
The United States Railroad Administration was the name of the nationalized railroad system of the United States between 1917 and 1920. It was possibly the largest American experiment with nationalization, and was undertaken against a background of war emergency.- Background :On April 6, 1917, the...
(USRA) took over the D&RG during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. In 1918 the D&RG fell into receivership after the bankruptcy of Western Pacific. The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW or DRGW) was incorporated in 1920, and formally emerged as the new re-organization of the old Denver and Rio Grande Railroad on July 31, 1921.
Moffat Road
Bond, Colorado
Bond is an unincorporated town and U.S. Post Office in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The Bond Post Office has the ZIP Code 80423.-Geography:...
on the Colorado River
Colorado River
The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...
, at a location called Orestod (Dotsero spelled backward). Despite the common misconception that Dotsero is a shortening of "Dot Zero," the station name exists from the construction of the standard gauge line to Glenwood Springs in the 1890s. Construction was completed in 1934, giving Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
a direct transcontinental link to the west. The D&RGW slipped into bankruptcy again in 1935. Emerging in 1947, it merged with the D&SL on March 3, 1947, gaining control of the "Moffat Road" through the Moffat Tunnel
Moffat Tunnel
The Moffat Tunnel is a railroad and water tunnel that cuts through the Continental Divide in north-central Colorado. Named after Colorado railroad pioneer David Moffat, the tunnel's first railroad traffic passed through in February 1928....
and a branch line from Bond to Craig, Colorado
Craig, Colorado
The City of Craig is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Moffat County, Colorado, United States. The population was 9,189 at the 2000 census...
.
"Fast Freights" and the California Zephyr, 1950–1983
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
's more northerly line was far less mountainous (and, as a result, several hours faster). The D&RGW's solution was its "fast freight" philosophy, which employed multiple diesel locomotives pulling short, frequent trains. This philosophy helps to explain why the D&RGW, despite its proximity to one of the nation's most productive coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
mining regions, retired coal-fueled steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s as quickly as new, replacement diesels could be purchased. By 1956, the D&RGW's standard-gauge steam locomotives had been retired and scrapped. The reason for this was that unlike steam locomotives, diesel locomotives could easily be combined, using the diesels' multiple unit
Multiple-unit train control
Multiple-unit train control, sometimes abbreviated to multiple-unit or MU, is a method of simultaneously controlling all the traction equipment in a train from a single location, whether it is a Multiple unit comprising a number of self-powered passenger cars or a set of locomotives.A set of...
(MU) capabilities, to equip each train with the optimum horsepower which was needed to meet the D&RGW's aggressive schedule.
The D&RGW's sense of its unique geographical challenge found expression in what is arguably the world's most famous passenger train, the California Zephyr
California Zephyr
The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
, which was jointly operated with the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad
The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington or as the Q, the Burlington Route served a large area, including extensive trackage in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Missouri,...
(CB&Q) from Chicago to Denver and the Western Pacific Railroad
Western Pacific Railroad
The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
from Salt Lake City to Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
, California (with ferry and bus connections to San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
). Unable to compete with the Union Pacific's faster, less mountainous route and 39-hour schedules, the California Zephyr offered a more leisurely journey – a "rail cruise" – with ample vistas of the Rockies. Although the California Zephyr ran at full capacity and turned a modest profit from its 1949 inception through the late 1950s, by the mid-1960s the train was profitable only during the late spring, summer, and fall. In 1970, Western Pacific, claiming multi-million dollar losses, dropped out. However, the D&RGW refused to join the national Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
system, and continued to operate its share of the Zephyr equipment as the Rio Grande Zephyr
Rio Grande Zephyr
The Rio Grande Zephyr was a passenger train operated by Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad between Denver, Colorado and Ogden, Utah in the Western United States. It operated from 1970 until 1983...
between Denver and Salt Lake City until 1983.
Durango, Colorado
The City of Durango is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of La Plata County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau said that the city population was 16,887 in 2010 census.-History:...
and Silverton, Colorado
Silverton, Colorado
The town of Silverton is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, San Juan County, Colorado, United States. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District,...
. Most of the remaining narrow-gauge trackage was abandoned in the 1950s and 1960s. Two of the most scenic routes survived in operation by the D&RGW, until they were sold to tourist railroad operators. The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad
The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad is a narrow gauge heritage railroad running between Chama, New Mexico and Antonito, Colorado. It runs over the Cumbres Pass, the highest point on a US passenger railway....
assumed operation of the line between Antonito, Colorado
Antonito, Colorado
The Town of Antonito is a statutory town located in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town's population was 873.-Geography:...
and Chama, New Mexico
Chama, New Mexico
Chama is a village in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,199 at the 2000 census. It is a small village, but tourism is starting to help the town's economy .-Geography:...
in 1970. The last D&RGW narrow gauge line, from Durango to Silverton, was sold in 1981 to the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is a narrow gauge heritage railroad that operates of track between Durango and Silverton, in the US state of Colorado...
, exactly one hundred years after the line went into operation.
Merger with Southern Pacific
In 1988, Rio Grande IndustriesRio Grande Industries
Rio Grande Industries was the diversified parent company, headquartered in Denver, of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. Formed in 1968, its non-railroad operations included construction, real estate, and energy units...
, the company that controlled the D&RGW under the direction of Philip Anschutz
Philip Anschutz
Philip Frederick Anschutz is an American entrepreneur. Anschutz bought out his father's drilling company in 1961 and earned large returns in Wyoming. He has invested in stocks, real estate and railroads...
, purchased the Southern Pacific Railroad
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
. The combined company used Southern Pacific's name due to its name recognition among shippers. In time, the Rio Grande's fast freight philosophy gave way to SP's long-established practice of running long, slow trains. A contributing factor was the rising cost of diesel fuel, a trend that set in after the 1973 oil crisis
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo. This was "in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war. It lasted until March 1974. With the...
, which gradually undermined the D&RGW's fuel-consuming "fast freight" philosophy. By the early 1990s, the combined Rio Grande/Southern Pacific Railroad had lost much of the competitive advantage that made it attractive to transcontinental shippers, and became largely dependent on hauling the high-quality coal produced in the mine fields of Colorado and Utah.
D&RGW locomotives retained their reporting marks and colors after the merger with Southern Pacific. The one noticeable change was to Southern Pacific's "Bloody Nose" paint scheme - the serif font on the sides of the locomotives was replaced by the Rio Grande's "speed lettering", which was utilized on all SP locomotives built after the merger.
Merger with Union Pacific
On September 11, 1996, Anschutz sold the combined company to the Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
, partly in response to the earlier merger of Burlington Northern
Burlington Northern Railroad
The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1996....
and Santa Fe
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
which formed the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway. As the Union Pacific absorbed the D&RGW into its system, signs of the fabled mountain railroad's existence are slowly fading away. D&RGW 5371, the only original D&RGW locomotive in full Rio Grande paint on the Union Pacific, was retired by UP in December, 2008. As previously promised by UP, the D&RGW 5371 was donated to the Utah State Railroad Museum at Ogden's Union Station on August 17, 2009, and will reside in the Eccles Rail Center at the south end of the building. The museum is located at 25th Street and Wall Ave in Ogden, Utah. Many other Rio Grande locomotives still run in service with Union Pacific, but have been "patch-renumbered," with a patch applied over the locomotive's number and the number boards replaced. This method allows the locomotives to be numbered into the Union Pacific's roster but is cheaper than fully repainting the engine into UP Armour Yellow.
Union Pacific recently unveiled UP 1989, an EMD SD70ACe painted in a stylized version of the DRGW color scheme. This unit is one of several SD70ACe locomotives the UP has painted in stylized colors to help preserve the image of the railroads it has merged; the others are Missouri Pacific Railroad
Missouri Pacific Railroad
The Missouri Pacific Railroad , also known as the MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers, including the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway , Texas and Pacific...
, Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad
The Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad was incorporated May 23, 1870. In its earliest days the MKT was commonly referred to as "the K-T", which was its stock exchange symbol; this common designation soon evolved into "the Katy"....
, Chicago and North Western Railway
Chicago and North Western Railway
The Chicago and North Western Transportation Company was a Class I railroad in the Midwest United States. It was also known as the North Western. The railroad operated more than of track as of the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states before retrenchment in the late 1970s...
, Southern Pacific Railroad
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
, and Western Pacific Railroad
Western Pacific Railroad
The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
.
Presidents
The following people served as presidents (or the equivalent) of the D&RGW and its predecessors.- William J. Palmer, 1870–1883
- Frederick Lovejoy, 1883–1884
- William S. Jackson, 1884-1887 (receiverReceivershipIn law, receivership is the situation in which an institution or enterprise is being held by a receiver, a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights." The receivership remedy is an equitable remedy that emerged in...
, 1884–1886) - David H. Moffat, 1887–1891
- Edward T. Jeffery, 1891–1912
- Benjamin F. Bush, 1912–1915
- Henry U. Mudge, 1915–1917
- Edward L. BrownEdward L. BrownEdward Lothrop Brown was a physician and political figure. He represented Horton township from 1847 to 1859 and Kings County from 1863 to 1871 in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly....
, 1917–1918 - Alexander R. Baldwin and Edward L. BrownEdward L. BrownEdward Lothrop Brown was a physician and political figure. He represented Horton township from 1847 to 1859 and Kings County from 1863 to 1871 in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly....
, 1918-1921 (receivers) - Joseph H. YoungJoseph H. YoungJoseph H. Young was a United States federal judge.Born in Hagerstown, Maryland, Young was an infantryman in the United States Army during World War II, from 1942 to 1946. He received an A.B. from Dartmouth College in 1948 and an LL.B. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1951...
, 1921-1923 (receiver, 1922–1923) - Thomas H. Beacom 1923-1924 (receiver)
- John S. Pyeatt, 1924–1935
- Wilson McCarthy and Henry Swan, 1935-1947 (trusteeTrusteeTrustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
s) - Wilson McCarthy, 1947–1956
- G. B. Aydelott, 1956–1977
- William J. Holtman, 1977-1992
Passenger trains
This is a partial list of D&RGW passenger trains. Westbound trains had odd numbers, while eastbound trains had even numbers.| Train numbers | Train name | Endpoints | Years of operation |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1/2 | Royal Gorge | Denver-Grand Junction (via Royal Gorge) | |
| 5/6 | The Exposition Flyer | Chicago-Oakland | 1939–1949 |
| 5/6 | California Zephyr California Zephyr The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California... |
Chicago-Oakland | 1949-1970 1983– |
| 7/8 | Prospector Prospector (passenger train) The Prospector was a passenger train operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western railroad between Denver, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah... |
Denver-Salt Lake City/Ogden | 1941–1942; 1945–1967 |
| 9/10 | Yampa Valley Mail | Denver-Craig | |
| 17/18 | California Zephyr California Zephyr The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California... |
Chicago-Oakland | 1949–1970 |
| 17/18 | Rio Grande Zephyr Rio Grande Zephyr The Rio Grande Zephyr was a passenger train operated by Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad between Denver, Colorado and Ogden, Utah in the Western United States. It operated from 1970 until 1983... |
Denver-Salt Lake City | 1970–1983 |
| 19/20 | Mountaineer | Denver-Grand Junction-Montrose | 1936–1959 |
| 115/116 | San Juan Express San Juan Express The San Juan Express was a narrow gauge train that ran on the 3ft Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad route from Durango, Colorado via Chama, NM, Cumbres Pass and Antonito, CO to Pueblo, Colorado. The Express ran until the early 1950s and most of the narrow gauge trackage has since been abandoned... |
Alamosa-Durango | 1881–1951 |
| 315/316 | Shavano Shavano (passenger train) The Shavano was a named passenger train operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad between Salida and Gunnison, Colorado. The train, named for nearby Mount Shavano, operated over the railroad's historic narrow gauge route over Marshall Pass... |
Salida-Gunnison | 1937–1940 |
| 461/462 | Silverton | Durango-Silverton | 1882–1981 |
| Special | Ski Train Ski Train The Ski Train was a seasonal passenger railroad operated by Rio Grande Scenic Railroad in the period 1940-2009. Starting in 1988, the train was operated by the Ansco Investment Company, which had in turn purchased the Ski Train franchise from the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad in that... |
Denver-Winter Park | 1940–2009 |
Other named passenger trains operated by the Rio Grande included the Colorado Eagle (operated in conjunction with the Missouri Pacific Railroad
Missouri Pacific Railroad
The Missouri Pacific Railroad , also known as the MoPac, was one of the first railroads in the United States west of the Mississippi River. MoPac was a Class I railroad growing from dozens of predecessors and mergers, including the St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway , Texas and Pacific...
between St. Louis and Denver), Panoramic (between Ogden and Denver), Royal Gorge (between Denver, Pueblo, and Ogden), and the Yampa Valley (between Denver and Craig, Colorado). From 1940 to 2009 the Ski Train
Ski Train
The Ski Train was a seasonal passenger railroad operated by Rio Grande Scenic Railroad in the period 1940-2009. Starting in 1988, the train was operated by the Ansco Investment Company, which had in turn purchased the Ski Train franchise from the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad in that...
connected Denver with Winter Park, Colorado
Winter Park, Colorado
Winter Park is a Home Rule Municipality in Grand County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 662 at the 2000 census, although tourists and seasonal workers significantly increase the population....
. This started as a D&RGW train but was bought by the Ansco Investment Company in 1988, then re-sold to Canada in 2009.
Note that the San Juan Express
San Juan Express
The San Juan Express was a narrow gauge train that ran on the 3ft Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad route from Durango, Colorado via Chama, NM, Cumbres Pass and Antonito, CO to Pueblo, Colorado. The Express ran until the early 1950s and most of the narrow gauge trackage has since been abandoned...
earlier was called the Colorado and New Mexico Express, and express passenger service had been offered between Alamosa and Durango since shortly after the line was completed in 1881. The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad now operates scenic trips over this route between Antonito, Colorado and Chama, New Mexico.
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is a narrow gauge heritage railroad that operates of track between Durango and Silverton, in the US state of Colorado...
, which has been operating since 1881, provides scenic day trips from Durango to Silverton.
The largest collection of surviving California Zephyr
California Zephyr
The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
equipment can be found at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum
Western Pacific Railroad Museum
The Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola, California, formerly known as the Portola Railroad Museum before , is a heritage railroad that preserves and operates historic American railroad equipment. The museum's mission is to preserve the history of the Western Pacific Railroad and is...
at Portola, California
Portola, California
Portola is the only incorporated city in Plumas County, California, United States. The population was 2,104 at the 2010 census, down from 2,227 at the 2000 census...
, although this museum focuses on the Western Pacific Railroad
Western Pacific Railroad
The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
, rather than the Rio Grande. Several items of DRGW owned Zephyr rolling stock still survive in private hands.
See also
- List of Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad lines
- San Juan ExpressSan Juan ExpressThe San Juan Express was a narrow gauge train that ran on the 3ft Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad route from Durango, Colorado via Chama, NM, Cumbres Pass and Antonito, CO to Pueblo, Colorado. The Express ran until the early 1950s and most of the narrow gauge trackage has since been abandoned...
- Heber Valley Historic RailroadHeber Valley Historic RailroadThe Heber Valley Historic Railroad is a heritage railroad based in Heber City, Utah. It operates passenger excursion trains along a line between Heber City and Vivian Park, which is located in Provo Canyon. The HVRR carries over 94,000 passengers a year....
, formerly D&RGW's Provo Canyon Branch - D & RG Narrow Gauge TrestleD & RG Narrow Gauge TrestleThe D & RG Narrow Gauge Trestle is a narrow gauge railroad trestle crossing of the Cimarron River, located near Cimarron, Colorado, United States...
- Narrow gauge railroads in the United StatesNarrow gauge railroads in the United StatesStandard gauge was favored for railway construction in the United States, although a fairly large narrow gauge system developed in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Isolated narrow gauge lines were built in many areas to minimize construction costs for industrial transport or resort access, and...
Further reading
- Brayer, Herbert Oliver. William Blackmore: Early Financing of the Denver & Rio Grande Railway 1871–1878. Volume two. Denver: 1949.