The Midland Terminal Railway was a
short line terminal railroad
A switching and terminal railroad is a freight railroad company whose primary purpose is to perform local switching services or to own and operate a terminal facility. Switching is a type of operation done within the limits of a yard. It genera ...
running from the
Colorado Midland Railway
The Colorado Midland Railway , Railway Equipment and Publication CompanyThe Official Railway Equipment Register June 1917, p. 786 incorporated in 1883, was the first standard gauge railroad built over the Continental Divide in Colorado. It ran fr ...
near
Divide to
Cripple Creek, Colorado
Cripple Creek is a statutory city that is the county seat of Teller County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 1,155 at the 2020 United States Census. Cripple Creek is a former gold mining camp located southwest of Colorado Sprin ...
. The railroad made its last run in February 1949.
Background
From 1887 to 1918, Colorado Midland Railroad operated rail service along a 222-mile line from Colorado City (now
Old Colorado City
Old Colorado City, formerly Colorado City, was once a town, but it is now a neighborhood within the city of Colorado Springs, Colorado. Its commercial district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It was founded during ...
), through
Ute Pass Ute Pass may refer to:
* Ute Pass (Medicine Bow Mountains), a mountain pass in the Medicine Bow Mountains of Colorado, United States.
* Ute Pass (Park Range), a mountain pass on the Continental Divide of the Americas in the Park Range of Colorad ...
and across the
Continental Divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...
, to the coal-mining town of
New Castle and
Grand Junction. It was the first standard gauge railroad through the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
. Travelers heading for Cripple Creek would get off the train at Divide and take the Hundley Stage along the toll road to the town. In 1892, passengers could also travel to Cripple Creek from Canon City via the
Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad
The Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad (F&CC) was a narrow-gauge railroad running northward from junctions with the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad at the mill towns of Florence and later moved to Cañon City, Colorado, on the banks of the Arkansas ...
, a narrow gauge line.
History
When gold was discovered in Cripple Creek and Victor in 1890, some of the Colorado Midland owners formed the Midland Terminal Railroad, a standard gauge spur line from Divide to Cripple Creek.
This allowed for passenger travel to and from Cripple Creek, shipment of equipment into the area, and the transport of ore to processing mills in Colorado City beginning in 1895. It was the only standard gauge railroad into Cripple Creek and Victor, which made for easy transfer of material at the Divide junction with the Colorado Midland Railway.
The
Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway
The Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway was a railroad operating in the U.S. state of Colorado around the turn of the 20th century.
History
On April 13, 1897, Lucian D. Ross, Thomas Burk, James L. Lindsay, W.T. Doubt and Kurn ...
was built by 1911 to transport ore from the Cripple Creek mining district through the mountains—on what is now Gold Camp Road or Teller County 8—directly to the
processing facilities in Old Colorado City. Eleven miles shorter distance than the Colorado Midland Railway, it was nicknamed the "Short Line" and offered freight and passenger service. Transportation across the Short Line reduced the cost of shipment as compared to what had been paid to the Colorado Midland Railway. Colorado Midland Railway went into foreclosure in 1917 and
Albert E. Carlton bought the company and ore began to be shipped through the Midland Terminal Railway to Old Colorado City. Expenses mounted after the
United States Railroad Administration
The United States Railroad Administration (USRA) was the name of the nationalisation, nationalized railroad system of the United States between December 28, 1917, and March 1, 1920. It was the largest American experiment with nationalization, and ...
began shipping materials to supply
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
troops through the Colorado Midland Railway lines, across railroad tracks and beds not able to accommodate the additional trains and tonnage. By August 1918 the railway ceased operations.
In 1919, the
terminal facilities at Old Colorado City and the abandoned tracks between Old Colorado City and Divide were sold to the Midland Terminal Railway, owned by Carlton and
Spencer Penrose
Spencer Penrose (November 2, 1865 - December 7, 1939) was an American entrepreneur and philanthropist. He made his fortune from mining, ore processing, and real estate speculation in Colorado and other parts of the West. He founded the Utah Copper ...
. The following year the line through Victor was extended to La Bella Junction. Passengers, mail, and ore was transported along the now Midland Terminal Railway tracks from Cripple Creek to Old Colorado City, but scheduled passenger service ended in 1931. After 1934, 90% of the railroad's business was transporting ore to the
Golden Cycle Mining and Reduction Company, which was the only remaining ore processing facility in Old Colorado City. There was some freight and ore shipped across the rails during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, but business dropped off thereafter. The railway had abandoned the Taylor Switchback to the Independence Mine in 1930 and in 1948 a total of of track from Old Colorado Springs to Cripple Creek, within the Cripple Creek mining district, and the spur in Old Colorado City to the Golden Cycle Mining and Reduction Company.
Legacy
Some of the old buildings at the Midland Terminal headquarters in Colorado Springs are in use today, notably the old roundhouse, which was purchased by
Van Briggle Pottery
Van Briggle Art Pottery was at the time of its demise the oldest continuously operating art pottery in the United States, having been established in Colorado Springs, Colorado in 1901 by Artus and Anne Van Briggle. Artus had a significant impact ...
in 1955,
and the machine shop, which is now the Ghost Town Museum.
U.S. Route 24
U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is in Independence Township, Mic ...
follows the former railroad's route over
Ute Pass Ute Pass may refer to:
* Ute Pass (Medicine Bow Mountains), a mountain pass in the Medicine Bow Mountains of Colorado, United States.
* Ute Pass (Park Range), a mountain pass on the Continental Divide of the Americas in the Park Range of Colorad ...
.
Two miles of the former railroad's right of way is currently used by the
Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad
The Cripple Creek & Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad (CC&VNG RR) is a narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates seasonal tourist trains between Cripple Creek and the city's outskirts to the south. The railroad uses a revitalized section of the o ...
. Another segment is being converted to a
multi-use trail
A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is 'designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists'. Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, bridleways and rail trails. A ...
connecting the
Pikes Peak Greenway to Manitou Springs. Portions of the roadbed and right of way from Divide, Colorado, to Cripple Creek, Colorado, are in use as Highway 67. A former wood-shored Midland Terminal tunnel was used as a one-lane highway tunnel on CO 67 until the 1990s; after a partial collapse the tunnel was bypassed with a new cut and the tunnel remains as a landmark, its ends are closed with a grille so the interior and shoring can be seen today.
See also
*
Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway
The Colorado Springs and Cripple Creek District Railway was a railroad operating in the U.S. state of Colorado around the turn of the 20th century.
History
On April 13, 1897, Lucian D. Ross, Thomas Burk, James L. Lindsay, W.T. Doubt and Kurn ...
*
Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad
The Cripple Creek & Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad (CC&VNG RR) is a narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates seasonal tourist trains between Cripple Creek and the city's outskirts to the south. The railroad uses a revitalized section of the o ...
Notes
References
Further reading
*
External links
Midland Terminal Railway photosin the Denver Public Library Western History and Genealogy collection
Cripple Creek & Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad
{{DEFAULTSORT:Midland Terminal Railway
3 ft gauge railways in the United States
Colorado Mining Boom
Defunct Colorado railroads
History of Colorado Springs, Colorado
Railway companies disestablished in 1949
Railway companies established in 1892
Switching and terminal railroads