Lets see...(From old D&RGW records...Circa 1926 and on...)
5 wires on the pole line at Mears Jct... Photo probably of a pole on the west side of Mears Jct. It had only 5 wires, so
they would have been:
Western Union 123 from Pueblo WU, Salida, Gunnison, Cimarron, Montrose, Ridgway ,ended on battery at Ouray.
Western Union 124 from Pueblo WU, Salida, Gunnison, Cimarron, Montrose, then to,Delta, looped out of Delta on the NorthFork Branch to Paonia amd Somerset, then back to Delta, and on north took battery at Western Union Grand Jct.
Western Union 136 to Gunnison, Crested Butte, looped to Anthracite, ended on ground at Crested Butte. CF&I leased wire
D&RGW No. 1 to Gunnison and Crested Butte. Took ground at Crested Butte, took intermediate battery at Gunnison, connected with wire 01 at Salida back to Jct and thence
down the Valley line to Alamosa. Took battery at WU Alamosa. Dispatcher's wire.
D&RGW No. 9 from battery at Salida to Gunnison, Sapinero, Cimarron, Montrose, north to D&RGW Grand Jct, Took Western Union battery Grand Jct. RR message wire.
These five Morse wires were in place until the line from Salida to Montrose was abandoned, There never were any RR Telephones on this line. Some local Telegraphones utilized
the RR msg wire No. 9 between several locations. (I have no record of where these were...I think Cimarron west to at least Cerro Summit. don't know where else).
Also...
Three Morse wires from Salida went south on the Valley Line to Alamosa:
.D&RGW 01 Dispatcher's wire. Took battery at Salida to Alamosa, took battery at WU Alamosa.
D&RGW No. 3 RR message wire from Pueblo to Salida, to Alamosa. Originally this wire went on thru Alamosa to Chama and Durango. When DS telephones were installed
on the Alamosa-Durango line (circa 1939) , wire No. 3 and wire No 109 on that line were taken and transposed for the DS telephone circuit, Thereafter Wire No. 3 took battery at Alamosa WU.
Western Union 118 from WU Pueblo to Salida, to Alamosa, and on up the Creede branch, to Del Norte, Wagon Wheel Gap, to Creede. Took battery at Creede.
This WU wire also looped to Westcliffe from Texas Creek until that branch was discontinued.
Howzat??? This is a subject dear to my heart, and I have been researching this stuff for years...still a work in progress for some parts of the D&RGW...
Ed Trump
Fairbanks, AK August 2019
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2019 11:43PM by Etrump.
