The Santa Fe, Prescott and Phoenix Railway (SFP&P) was a

common carrier A common carrier in common law countries (corresponding to a public carrier in some civil law systems,Encyclopædia Britannica CD 2000 "Civil-law public carrier" from "carriage of goods" usually called simply a ''carrier'') is a person or compan ...

railroad that later became an operating subsidiary of the

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison, Kansas, Atchison and Top ...

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. At Ash Fork, Arizona, the SFP&P connected with Santa Fe's operating subsidiary, the

Atlantic & Pacific Railroad The Atlantic and Pacific Railroad was a U.S. railroad that owned or operated two disjointed segments, one connecting St. Louis, Missouri with Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the other connecting Albuquerque, New Mexico with Needles, California, Needles in ...

mainline, that ran from California to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. The SFP&P's line extended the Santa Fe Railway south into

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

. The SFP&P extended another to the east from Phoenix to Florence and Winkelman via the Phoenix and Eastern Railroad (which would become a Southern Pacific Railroad subsidiary in 1907). The SFP&P also served several mines in the Prescott area, including the Derby Mine by way of the Summit (flag) Station at 'Prieta' in the

Sierra Prieta The Sierra Prieta is a longArizona Road & Recreation Atlas, Benchmark Maps, c. 1998, pp. 74–75. mountain range in central-northwest Arizona. The range is the mountainous region west of Prescott, with prominent Thumb Butte, , a volcanic plug, ...

range, through its various subsidiary railroads. Sierra Prieta Summit Station SFPPRR

On December 28, 1911, the line was merged into Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway's

non-operating subsidiary In the United States, a paper railroad is a company in the railroad business that exists "on paper only": as a legal entity which does not own any track, locomotives, or rolling stock. In the early days of railroad construction, paper railroads h ...

( paper railroad) of the California, Arizona and Santa Fe Railway. Today the line from Ash Fork to Phoenix is operated by the BNSF Railway. Due to its many winding curves and bridges, the route was popularly known as the Peavine. In the 1960s, the AT&SF built a new line to avoid the worst grades and curves, bypassing the city of Prescott, called the New Peavine Bypass.

History

Santa Fe, Prescott & Phoenix Railway 1893

The SFP&P was chartered on May 27, 1891. Construction commenced on August 17, 1892, from the Atlantic & Pacific connection at Ash Fork. By April 1893 trains were operating between Ash Fork and Prescott. On March 13, 1895, the line ran all the way to Phoenix. On June 30, 1899, the SFP&P began operating the Prescott and Eastern Railroad that ran between Entro (near Prescott) to Mayer. In 1901–02 the SFP&P also operated its subsidiary the Bradshaw Mountain Railroad. On November 27, 1904, the SFP&P started operating Santa Fe Railway's subsidiary, the Phoenix and Eastern Railroad between Phoenix – Florence – Winkelman. The SFP&P stopped operating the Phoenix & Eastern when Southern Pacific Railroad acquired the Phoenix–Winkelman line on March 13, 1907. On November 1, 1905, the SFP&P began operating the Arizona & California Railway that ran from a connection with the Santa Fe Railway in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

at Cadiz, California, to a connection with SFP&P at Matthie, Arizona, (located between Prescott and Wickenburg). By the end of 1909 the Arizona & California was an operating subsidiary of the SFP&P, using 3 4-6-0 locomotives made by

Brooks Locomotive Works The Brooks Locomotive Works manufactured railroad steam locomotives and freight cars from 1869 through its merger into the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in 1901. History When the New York and Erie Railroad (NY&E) relocated its shops facili ...

. On December 29, 1911, the SFP&P was merged into the California, Arizona and Santa Fe Railway, a

(paper railroad) of the

Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The railroad was chartered in February 1859 to serve the cities of Atchison and Topeka, Kansas, and ...

Motive power

The SFP&P operated a fleet of about 27 steam locomotives. 21 of the locomotives were

4-6-0 (also known as a ''Chesapeake'' or ''Ten-wheeler'', UIC classification 2'C)

steam locomotives A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

built between 1893 and 1903. Most of these locomotives would be renumbered ATSF #2421-2435. The SFP&P also had six

2-8-0 (also known as a ''Consolidation'')

built between 1904 and 1906. These locomotives would be renumbered ATSF #2439-2444.

Operating railroads

* 1897–1911 by the Santa Fe, Prescott & Phoenix Railway * 1912– by the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway

Route

Mainline

* Ash Fork * Paulden * Prescott * Alto * Summit Station (Prieta) * Iron Springs * Skull Valley * Kirkland *

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

* Wickenburg * Phoenix The original mainline ran via Prescott, the Peavine Bypass runs from Paulden to Skull Valley farther west.

Branches

* Prescott & Eastern Railroad ** Entro – Dewey – Poland Junction – Mayer * Bradshaw Mountain Railroad ** Poland Junction – Poland ** Mayer – Turkey Creek – Saddle – Crown King * Phoenix and Eastern Railroad (1904–1907) ** Phoenix –

Mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a ...

–

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

– Kelvin –

Winkelman Winkelman is a town in Gila and Pinal counties in Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the town was 353, all of whom lived in Gila County. History The community was named after Peter Winkelman, a local catt ...

* Arizona & California Railway ** Cadiz –

Parker, Arizona Parker ( Mojave 'Amat Kuhwely, formerly 'Ahwe Nyava) is the county seat of La Paz County, Arizona, United States, on the Colorado River in Parker Valley. The population was 3,083 at the 2010 census. History Founded in 1908, the town was named ...

– Bouse – Salome – Matthie The Arizona & California gave ATSF a more direct route from Los Angeles to Phoenix.

References

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Santa Fe Prescott Phoenix Railway Defunct Arizona railroads Predecessors of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Prescott, Arizona Former Class I railroads in the United States Railway companies established in 1891 Railway companies disestablished in 1911 Historic trails and roads in the United States