Re: Now on Topic! D&RGW Ry's "Spirit Line"
| March 31, 2017 12:26PM |
dougvv Wrote:
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>
>
>
> When Palmer created the D&RGW after the D&RG was
> blocked by the Santa Fe, he built both east to
> Grand Junction and south to Marysvale
> location survey run west from Green River to the
> Marysvale branch (supposedly some small grading
> was done in the mountain crossing at a point or
> two where there was room for only one railroad.
1) Line to the Siever River valley was built by RGW, not D&RGW ry. Thistle to Manti (ng) 1890, std gauged and extended to Salina 1891,to Belknap 1896, to Marysvale 1900.
2) Survey from Green River to Salina and then North was part of the original proposed route for D&RGW Ry, changed to Soldier Summit route in 1881-2. Apparently one of the surveyors had made a 1000' error in the elevation of a summit on this route, work was finally called off in late 1881 after over $215,000 had been spent on grading. It is uncertain exactly how much was graded but a grade, which never had track on it, exists running from Green river up Tidwell Draw & Cottonwood Wash South of Cedar Mtn to Buckhorn Flat, SE of Huntington, Utah(aka Castle Valley Jct). A wye was graded there with the apparent plan being a line North to Price and another West to Salina, then on to Los Angeles. It is uncertain how much grading was done on the line to Price, as at least some of the grade was used by the Southern Utah Ry (1908-1921) which ran South from Price and was killed off by the Utah Ry. Finally this plan was revived by George Gould in 1903 as a shortcut to connect with the LA & SL (later UP) SLC-LA line at Milford, Utah. About 20 miles were built East from Salina in the same canyon where I-70 runs now. This line was a failure and operated only intermittently to a coal mine near the East end. Rebuilt several times, it was finally torn up in the 1930's. (two of the four tunnels on this line can be seen next to I-70 in Salina Canyon.) [1]
>
> generally to cross the Grand River at Lee's Ferry
Now that I've never heard. Seems obvious but the only proposed rr through Lee's Ferry I've ever heard of was the Denver & Colorado Canyon idea in the late 1880's. (BTW, Beyond the Conluence in what is now Canyonlands Nat. park, where the Green & Grand Rivers meet, the river has always been the Colorado. this includes Lee's Ferry.
)
Hank
[1]"Utah Ghost Rails" Stephen L. Carr & Robert W. Edwards. Pub by Western Epics, SLC, Utan 1989. pgs 169-170, 179-180, 192-194
(See also Colo. Rail Annual #20)
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/2017 12:30PM by hank.
-------------------------------------------------------
>
>
>
> When Palmer created the D&RGW after the D&RG was
> blocked by the Santa Fe, he built both east to
> Grand Junction and south to Marysvale
> location survey run west from Green River to the
> Marysvale branch (supposedly some small grading
> was done in the mountain crossing at a point or
> two where there was room for only one railroad.
1) Line to the Siever River valley was built by RGW, not D&RGW ry. Thistle to Manti (ng) 1890, std gauged and extended to Salina 1891,to Belknap 1896, to Marysvale 1900.
2) Survey from Green River to Salina and then North was part of the original proposed route for D&RGW Ry, changed to Soldier Summit route in 1881-2. Apparently one of the surveyors had made a 1000' error in the elevation of a summit on this route, work was finally called off in late 1881 after over $215,000 had been spent on grading. It is uncertain exactly how much was graded but a grade, which never had track on it, exists running from Green river up Tidwell Draw & Cottonwood Wash South of Cedar Mtn to Buckhorn Flat, SE of Huntington, Utah(aka Castle Valley Jct). A wye was graded there with the apparent plan being a line North to Price and another West to Salina, then on to Los Angeles. It is uncertain how much grading was done on the line to Price, as at least some of the grade was used by the Southern Utah Ry (1908-1921) which ran South from Price and was killed off by the Utah Ry. Finally this plan was revived by George Gould in 1903 as a shortcut to connect with the LA & SL (later UP) SLC-LA line at Milford, Utah. About 20 miles were built East from Salina in the same canyon where I-70 runs now. This line was a failure and operated only intermittently to a coal mine near the East end. Rebuilt several times, it was finally torn up in the 1930's. (two of the four tunnels on this line can be seen next to I-70 in Salina Canyon.) [1]
>
> generally to cross the Grand River at Lee's Ferry
Now that I've never heard. Seems obvious but the only proposed rr through Lee's Ferry I've ever heard of was the Denver & Colorado Canyon idea in the late 1880's. (BTW, Beyond the Conluence in what is now Canyonlands Nat. park, where the Green & Grand Rivers meet, the river has always been the Colorado. this includes Lee's Ferry.
)Hank
[1]"Utah Ghost Rails" Stephen L. Carr & Robert W. Edwards. Pub by Western Epics, SLC, Utan 1989. pgs 169-170, 179-180, 192-194
(See also Colo. Rail Annual #20)
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/31/2017 12:30PM by hank.
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