464 in 1956

This is the second narrow gauge picture I ever took. I arrived in Durango at night by Trailways bus from Denver, asked the bus depot person where there was a hotel, and was directed to the Strater, which was one block from the bus depot (1956). My room was $4.50, had a sink in the corner, bathroom down the hall, and at best, I'd describe the 1950s Strater as respectable seedy. In the morning, I was awakened by the 464 as it was switching the north yard tracks. I leaned out my window and took my first shot, got dressed and headed downstairs for this second shot. This was really exciting for a 15 year old.
As best as I can recall and place myself, the Strater was to my back, the D&RGW freight house looms up in the background, and the Rio Grande Motorways building was to the right, out of the picture, where the Strater presently has a parking lot. The grain elevator in the left background is where Town Plaza shopping center is now located.
The 464 has in tow a refrigerator car, and is pushing the water car. I think they had the maximum amount of coal on that tender. From here, I wandered on down the tracks towards the station, found the Jordan ditcher parked on the scale track in back of what's now part of the Strater theater, but then was a automotive garage, and that had a fire later on in the day that what seems like the whole Durango fire department responded to. And the next day I rode the train to Silverton, and as the passengers were waiting to board the train, the 464 was again doing its morning switching. This was when there were daily freights into Durango, and not all the traffic was for Farmington.
I mention to people that as a teenager my folks let me wander on my own on train trips and they are surprised. My mother was in Denver visiting when I took this trip and she was not concerned about her son taking an unsupervised trip off into the unknown. I guess most parents today are far more protective of their younger kids, but I had a great time finding these places and getting there using what ever public transportation was available.
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