OK, I have always wondered about this and now that there is a BN forum, I can ask !! When I was a kid, growing up outside of Boulder, Colorado, there was a rail line that passed by my folks house. Now in the early 70's the BN took over this route which ran (I assume) from Denver to Cheyenne. I can remember the red BN engines with white lettering. The question is, who had this line before the BN?? I can remember, before they took it over, seeing streamlined passenger trains late at night on the line, and that is about it... Happy Railroading!! John ------------------ The Santa Fe and Southwestern, Chief of the Southwest!!
Although I am not sure which line you are talking about if BN owned it in Colorado it proably came from the CB&Q, or CB&Q owened Colorado $ Southern. Kevin
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kevin D Mumaw: Although I am not sure which line you are talking about if BN owned it in Colorado it proably came from the CB&Q, or CB&Q owned Colorado $ Southern. Kevin<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> The line became a Colorado and Southern line through roundabout means. Though the CB&Q eventually had a controlling interest, the C&S was run as a seperate entity. A brief history follows; This was the line built by the Colorado Central from Denver to Cheyenne in the 1877-78 with UP backing then leased to UP in 1879. In 1890, the UP backed shortlines were organised into the Union Pacific, Denver and Gulf (UPD&G) and after the UP went into receivership in 1893 a seperate receiver was appointed to the UPD&G severing it from the UP. As it came out of receivership, UPD&G's new owners formed a company to acquire UPD&G's assets, along with those of the Denver, Leadville, and Gulf, creating the C&S on 11 January 1899. Shortly afterwards the CB&Q became interested in the C&S and on Dec 19 1908 bought a controlling interest. Information sourced from Wendover, Acme, and Virginia Point - A Contemporary Look at the Colorado and Southern, and the Forth Worth and Denver by Stephen M. Reeves. Published by Red River Publications. ISBN: 0-938794-01-9 Probably more than you wanted to know! Gary. ------------------ Gary A. Rose The Unofficial TC&W page TrainBoard Moderator and Member No.377 N to the Nth degree!
Cool!! Thanks guys, I have suspected that it was CB& Q since they served a lot of the coal mines in the area I grew up. I do have one other memory of that line. There was a steam engine that was brought up the line on very special occassions (Labor Day, Fourth of July, etc.) by a rail club. I don't know if it was an ex CB&Q or a C&S engine, but as a small child I was enthralled by it (I guess I was born loving trains !!). Unfortunately every time the steam engine ran it caught the right-of-way on fire and after the BN took over I never saw the little steamer again...Happy Railroading!! John ------------------ The Santa Fe and Southwestern, Chief of the Southwest!!
I remember seeing the early GPs, but the earliest must have been SDs, although I couldn't be sure (I would need to see a pic of one to tell, don't know my diesels very well!!). I remember that the steam engine was a 2-6-0 though. Happy railroading! John ------------------ The Santa Fe and Southwestern, Chief of the Southwest!!
