C&S #60 ~ A Few Answers

Guys,

Here are a few answers and comments about #60.

As Donald Foster points out, #60 did pull the last passenger train out of Denver. The anniversary of the last run is coming up Monday, it was April 9, 1937.

#60 was donated to Clear Creek County by the C&S as part of a settlement for outstanding tax assesments owed by the Railroad. It was painted, moved, and set up by the C&S on a siding beside the mainline just before the street crossing it is just above now.

For years it sat in gradual decay and was eventually painted by volunteers from the C&S shops in Denver in the early 1960's. At that time the engine was painted, more or less, in a paint scheme that was being used by the C&S on the last servicable standard gauge steam engines on the C&S. This included a red cab roof and snowplow blade, and CB&Q numbers and Burlington Route heralds on the tender.

In the early to mid 1980's, volunteers from Idaho Springs (including Mike Horner and Steve Swansen) and from the Boulder Model RR Club (including myself and Todd Hackett and others) set out to help move the engine across the street to it's present location, which is beside the new County Building. New track was laid for it, and on moving day, the engine, tender and coach were all towed into place using temporary track sections. It is not only close to the actual original right of way, it is virtually on the right of way, although the actual main line may have been a few feet closer to the street.

The engine and coach were painted as authentically C&S as possible, using a tracing for the tender lettering that was made from #71, which was carefully restored in Central City by Rick Steele.

I still have that tracing and the stencil we made from it in Boulder.

Since the move it has been kept in pretty good shape, and Mike Horner, as has been suggested, would be the right place to start in any discussion about helping to work on it.

For most of it's time in service on the C&S, #60 was the switch engine in Leadville. It had footboards fore and aft, and a backup light on the tender. It also carried a canvas hose wrapped on a spool under the round tin cover on the cab roof for fire service.

At the end of mainline operations, #60 was fitted with a snowplow in Denver, where it had been sent for scheduled boiler and mechanical work, to help in passenger and occasional freight rotation. Switching operations in Leadville were handled by regular freight engines during this time. #74 is known to have done some switching there, and #73 carried a backup light at the end of operations, so it too, was probably used for Leadville switching in addition to regular duties.

The smokebox front is considered a UP Style front and was installed on many of these engines in the 1880's and 90's, when the DSP&P and later, DL&G, and UPD&G were all under UP ownership. During these pre C&S years, many of the characteristics thought to be unique to C&S motive power appeared.

One final comment, we had an opportunity to meet and speak to a lot of wonderful residents of Idaho Springs during our time up there and we'll never forget the experience. One of the things we learned up there is that the guy who used to run the gift shop next to the original location used to burn tires in the firebox on various occasions for the purpose of making smoke. One of the unintentional consequences of this appears to have been damage inside the firebox. Of course, no one at that time ever would have thought it might ever be considered for restoration. It's really a miracle that as much of this stuff has survived at all.

I hope this helps answer some of the obvious questions and misconceptions evident in this thread.

Mike Trent



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 04/07/2012 05:57PM by Mike Trent.