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Monarch Branch
The Monarch Branch was a branch line of the Denver & Rio Grande Western built in the 1880s to serve the Colorado Fuel & Iron limestone quarry at Monarch, Colorado. Originally part of the D&RGW's 3 ft gauge railways, 3 ft 0 in (914 mm) Narrow-gauge railway, narrow-gauge system, the 15 mile line connected with the rest of the narrow-gauge Rail network, network at Poncha Junction, on the Marshall Pass line. The upper part of the Branch was on a 4.5% Ruling grade, grade and included both an Reverse curve, "S" curve and a double Zig zag (railway), switchback to reach an elevation of over 10,000 ft (3,000 m). The line was converted to Standard-gauge railway, standard-gauge in 1956 after the narrow-gauge mainline from Salida, Colorado, Salida to Gunnison, Colorado, Gunnison was closed in the early 1950s. From that time forward, the line operated as a standard-gauge branch of the D&RGW until the early 1980s when Colorado Fuel & Iron closed its blast furnaces at Pueblo, Colorado. Opera ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mine Railway
A mine railway (or mine railroad, U.S.), sometimes pit railway, is a railway constructed to carry materials and workers in and out of a mine. Materials transported typically include ore, coal and overburden (also called variously spoils, waste, slack, culm, and tilings; all meaning waste rock). It is little remembered, but the mix of heavy and bulky materials which had to be hauled into and out of mines gave rise to the first several generations of railways, at first made of wooden rails, but eventually adding protective iron, steam locomotion by fixed engines and the earliest commercial steam locomotives, all in and around the works around mines. History Mine rails Wagonways (or tramways) were developed in Germany in the 1550s to facilitate the transport of ore tubs to and from mines, using primitive wooden rails. Such an operation was illustrated in 1556 by Georgius Agricola of Germany (Image right). This used "Hund" carts with unflanged wheels running on wooden planks an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
