Railroad history can be rather dull, but not in the case of the Royal Gorge where two railroads went to war over the passage through this narrow defile. It got to the point where armed men constructed small, stone forts along the banks of the Arkansas River. The conflict was between the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe and the Denver & Rio Grande.
Gen. William Jackson Palmer was the force behind an upstart Rio Grande with a charter to construct a line from Denver south to Pueblo then west through the Royal Gorge. It followed the Arkansas River and was originally to take its mainline over Poncha Pass and south across the vast expanse of the San Luis Valley. After reaching its namesake, the Rio Grande, it was to follow the river to El Paso, Texas and even into Mexico.
To lower construction costs and allow the use of light equipment that could negotiate steep grades and tight curves, narrow gauge was selected (three feet between the rails).
Denver & Rio Grande surveyors located a route through the gorge in 1871 but were negligent in filing the necessary paperwork. The rival Santa Fe built its standard gauge line across Eastern Colorado to Pueblo and in 1877, filed properly for the right to build through the Royal Gorge. Their surveyors even used the same survey stakes left by the Denver & Rio Grande.
It should be noted that below the Royal Gorge Suspension Bridge, the canyon is so narrow that only one railroad could squeeze through this restriction.
While Santa Fe workers were working on the grade in the Royal Gorge, Rio Grande men constructed small, stone forts on the hillsides. They would roll rocks down on the Santa Fe laborers.
Railroad: Royal Gorge Route Railroad.
Where: Fremont County; train leaves from Cañon City.
What: Ride goes through the Royal Gorge under Royal Gorge Bridge. Ride options include coach, dome car and dining car.
The conflict see-sawed back and forth in the courts and when it seemed like one side would win, a higher court would reverse the decision of a lower court.
By 1879, the Santa Fe had hundreds of men at work. In places, the men had to be lowered down the perpendicular canyon walls to establish a foothold on the grade.
Track was laid from Cañon City and the first excursion ran to Parkdale at the western end of the gorge. The conflict over a lease agreement between the two railroads escalated when the Santa Fe hired 100 gun slingers, including the famous Dodge City sheriff Bat Masterson.
In the mean time, the famous Hanging Bridge was installed at the narrowest point in 1879, and the line was complete.
In a surprise ending, the Rio Grande ended up with the entire Royal Gorge route and reimbursed the Santa Fe for its construction costs. This allowed the Rio Grande to participate in the lucrative mining traffic to and from Leadville and to continue construction over Tennessee Pass.
The Rio Grande soon found that its narrow gauge strategy was awkward and time-consuming when it came to transferring loads to standard gauge cars. It started changing over to standard gauge including a third outer rail through the Royal Gorge in 1890 to allow passage of both gauges.
Part one of a two-part series. Next: the rebirth of passenger service through the Royal Gorge.
Kenneth Jessen has been a Loveland resident since 1965. He is an author of 18 books and more than 1,300 articles. He was an engineer for Hewlett-Packard for 33 years and now works as a full-time author, lecturer and guide.
