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 Schematic map of C&S lines | |
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Reporting mark | C&S, CS, CX |
| Locale | Colorado,Wyoming,New Mexico,Texas |
| Dates of operation | 1898–1982 |
| Successor | Burlington Northern |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge |
| Previous gauge | 3 ft (914 mm) |
TheColorado and Southern Railway (reporting marksC&S,CS,CX) was an AmericanClass I railroad in the western United States that operated independently from 1898 to 1908, then as part of theChicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until it was absorbed into theBurlington Northern Railroad in 1982.
The railway began as the consolidation of bankrupt railroads in 1898. TheColorado Central Railroad andCheyenne and Northern Railway were brought together to form theUnion Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway in 1890. When Union Pacific went bankrupt in 1893 they were separated from the Union Pacific and united with theDenver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway and others, byFrank Trumbull to form the Colorado and Southern Railroad in 1898. In 1908 theChicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad bought control of the C&S. It would later merge into theBurlington Northern Railroad in 1982.
At the end of 1970 it operated 692 miles of road on 1116 miles of track; that year it reported 1,365 million ton-miles (1,993 million tkm) of revenue freight. In 1980 route-miles had dropped to 678 but ton-miles had ballooned to 7,230 million ton-miles (10,560 million tkm): Powder River coal had arrived.
C&S was also the parent company of theFort Worth and Denver Railway, which ran from a connection atTexline south and east intoTexas. The FW&D was established as a separate company becauseTexas law required that railroads operating within its borders must be incorporated within that state.
The Colorado and Southern3-ft-gauge lines were formed in 1898 from theColorado Central and theDenver, South Park and Pacific Railroads. The narrow gauge operations had four distinct portions: thePlatte Canyon Line fromDenver toComo, the Gunnison Line from Como toGunnison viaAlpine Tunnel, Highline between Como andLeadville, and the Clear Creek rail line from Denver toSilver Plume. Major Branch lines were the Baldwin branch between Gunnison and Baldwin; the Keystone from Dickey toKeystone; the Blackhawk branch between Forks Creek andCentral City; the Alma Branch from Como toAlma; and the Morrison Branch from Denver toMorrison. The Colorado and Southern narrow gauge operations never owned a new engine, all the motive power was inherited from the former companies.
TheGilpin Railroad (earlier the Gilpin Tramway Company) was a 2 ft (610 mm) narrow gauge railway inGilpin County operating from 1887 to 1917. However, on June 27, 1906, the Gilpin had been sold to the Colorado and Southern.[1]
The Colorado and Southern narrow gauge was slowly abandoned piece by piece in the 33 years between 1910 and 1943. The first line to close was part of the Gunnison Line between Hancock and Quartz. This included Alpine Tunnel, although rail was not removed until the 1940s. The isolated segments between Quartz and Gunnison and Gunnison to Baldwin were leased and later sold to theDenver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. Quartz to Gunnison survived until 1936 and the Baldwin Branch lasted until 1954. The next line to be ripped up was between Garos andBuena Vista. This left another isolated line between Buena Vista and Hancock, which was abandoned four years later. The Morrison Branch was removed in 1926. In 1931 the portion of the Blackhawk branch betweenCentral City andBlackhawk was removed. Times were tough during theGreat Depression and by the end the narrow gauge was worn out. What was left of the former Denver South Park & Pacific between Denver and Leadville including the Alma and Keystone branches was removed in the summer of 1938, excluding the 20-mile portion between Denver andWaterton and the 14-mile segment between Leadville andClimax. The next line to fall was between Silver Plume andIdaho Springs, in 1939. This included the famousGeorgetown Loop. In May 1941 the last of the Clear Creek lines began being torn up betweenGolden, Colorado and Idaho Springs. This included the Blackhawk branch. Thedual-gauge third rail that had allowed narrow-gauge trains to run between Denver and Golden was also removed. (However, thestandard gauge segment still exists today to serve theCoors Brewery.) Most of the track was removed in 1942 between Waterton andChatfield.[2] The rest was converted to standard gauge, ending all narrow-gauge service out of Denver. The last narrow-gauge operation, between Leadville and the Climax mines, was converted to standard gauge to handle heavy traffic fromWorld War II. The last Colorado and Southern narrow-gauge train, pulled by engine 76, ran the 28 mile roundtrip on August 25, 1943. The next day standard-gauge locomotives began hauling the loads. The C&S narrow gauge thus became part of history.
Not much of the narrow gauge survives today. There are five surviving Locomotives:2-8-0 C&S #31 (Baldwin, 1880) is at theColorado Railroad Museum painted asDenver Leadville and Gunnison 191,2-8-0C&S#71 (pictured above) (Baldwin, 1897) is on display inCentral City, Colorado,2-6-0 C&S #9 (Cooke, 1884) is on display inBreckenridge, Colorado,2-8-0C&S #60 (Rhode Island, 1886) is on display inIdaho Springs, Colorado, and2-8-0 C&S #74 (Brooks, 1898) is currently on display at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, Colorado. Two roundhouses survive inComo, Colorado andLeadville, Colorado. Rolling stock has been scattered across the US. Some are on display in Colorado, onemail car found its way to Nebraska, and someboxcars are on theWhite Pass and Yukon Route in Alaska. Remaining Water towers are the French Gulch tank near Leadville, Bakers tank near Breckenridge, and Halfway tank near Alpine Tunnel. TheGeorgetown Loop was rebuilt as a tourist railroad in the 1980s and can be ridden from April through the first week in January.
The following lines were consolidated between 1890 and 1900 to form the C&S:
