Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad
The Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad (DSP & PRR) was a railroad company in the US state of Colorado that operated narrow-gauge (914 mm / 3 ft gauge) railroad lines west of Denver.
The company was founded in 1872, taken over by the Union Pacific Railway in 1880 and renamed Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway (DL&G) in 1889 after reorganization as a result of bankruptcy . After the Union Pacific Railway came under insolvency administration in 1893, DL&G had to file for bankruptcy again in 1894. In 1898 she was taken over as part of foreclosure by the Colorado and Southern Railway . With the exception of the Climax – Leadville section, which was converted to standard gauge in 1943, this shut down the narrow-gauge lines in sections until 1937. The length of the route network was 539 km / 335 miles. In 1881 the DSP & P Railroad opened its route over the continental divide of the Rocky Mountains through the Alpine Tunnel at a height of 3512.4 m. This was the highest tunnel structure of its time.
History and lines
The company was incorporated on October 2, 1872 in the Colorado Territory . In August 1873, construction began between Denver and Morrison . On June 20, 1874 the tracks reached Morrison and a branch line to Mt. Carbon was completed to remove coal, stone and wood. Further construction work was delayed by the financing difficulties of the railway line. It was not until 1879 that the tracks reached Como over the Kenosha Pass. At that time the railway line was very profitable, the track construction could progress so quickly and contracts for the construction of the Alpine tunnel were signed.
Rich ore finds around Leadville made the city the interim destination of the track construction work and a race with the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad took place . The South Park Line first reached Leadville in 1979, followed by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad a short time later. For cost reasons, both companies later agreed to share the routes to Leadville.
Now the most difficult and expensive section of the route over the Rocky Mountains began. The tracks meandered towards Altman Pass via Chalk Creek Canyon. This was crossed under by the 556 m long Alpine Tunnel, which was completed in 1881. The steep and winding route required numerous engineering structures, such as the retaining walls at The Palisades (steep rock face on the east side of the pass). The Alpine Station was set up on the west side of the pass. Here was a massive locomotive shed with an internal turntable and a boarding house (waiting room, restaurant and overnight accommodation). For trips over the pass, the trains needed several auxiliary locomotives, which turned at the Alpine Station and drove back. In winter, the masses of snow at the top of the pass caused considerable problems and the pass section had to be closed at this time of the year. The tunnel was damaged several times by water and meltwater ingress and was therefore shut down in 1910.
In 1882 the tracks reached Parlin and met there with those of the Denver and Rio Grande Westerns. Together, the two railway lines reached Gunnison in 1882 .
Further plans of the South Park Line to continue westward ended north of Gunnison due to a lack of rights of way and financial resources. Bankruptcy followed in 1888 and foreclosure in 1889, after which operations were continued under a new management and name as Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railway (DL&G).
Jay Gould had already acquired around 50% of the shares in DSP & P in the 1870s . In 1880 he took over the company completely and sold it to the Union Pacific Railway (UP), in which he held the majority of the shares. DL&G also remained under control of the UP until it had to file for bankruptcy in 1893. The now independent DL&G itself ran into financial difficulties and had to file for bankruptcy on August 4, 1894. Operations continued at a low level until the DL&G was taken over by the newly formed Colorado and Southern Railway in 1898 as a result of the foreclosure proceedings together with the Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf Railway .
In 1910 the Alpine Tunnel was closed, the western parts of the route were still served by the Denver and Rio Grande Westerns. In 1937 the last narrow-gauge train ran on the old South Park route between Denver and Como. A short stretch between Leadville and Climax continued to operate and was converted to standard gauge in 1943. This section is served today by the Leadville, Colorado and Southern Railroad Tourist Railway .
Web links
- - engl. Description of the route and pictures
- - engl. Association site that is dedicated to the preservation of
- - engl. Club site that is dedicated to the museum structure of a section of the route
- - engl. historical photos of the railway line
Individual evidence
- ^ A b The Historical Guide to North American Railroads . Kalmbach Media, 2014, ISBN 978-0-89024-970-3 , pp. 107-108 (English).
- ↑ Mallory Hope Ferrell: The South Park Line . Ed .: Hundman Publishing, Inc. 1st edition. 2003, ISBN 0-945434-58-8 .