The Tucson, Cornelia and Gila Bend Railroad went from the
Southern Pacific
The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...
's (now
Union Pacific
The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...
's)
Gila Subdivision
The Sunset Route is a main line of the Union Pacific Railroad running between Southern California and New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the southernmost railway that connects the central United States to the U.S. Pacific Coast.
History
The idea ...
in
Gila Bend, Arizona
Gila Bend (; O'odham: Hila Wi:n), founded in 1872, is a town in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. The town is named for an approximately 90-degree bend in the Gila River, which is near the community's current location. As of the 2020 ...
to
Ajo, Arizona
Ajo ( ) is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It is the closest community to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. The population was 3,039 at the 2020 United States census, ...
.
The railroad was incorporated in 1915
for use by the
New Cornelia mine
The New Cornelia mine is a currently inactive open-pit copper mine in Pima County, Arizona, United States. It was the only productive mine in the Ajo mining district, and is located just outside the town of Ajo, which was built as a company ...
at Ajo. Originally, the railroad was intended to connect to Tucson.
[ The railroad was in operation from 1916 until the 1980s.][ In 1934, Childs was described as having a post office and station.][
In 1926, it was reported that the track was 44.327 miles long and that the railroad owned an additional 3.310 miles of tracks and sidings.
In 1969, six stations were listed in the timetable, but only Ajo and Gila Bend were agency stations. Black Gap and Rocky Point were short sidings used when passenger trains met. Childs and Midway were longer sidings.][
In 1998, ]Phelps Dodge
Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 as an import-export firm by Anson Greene Phelps and his two sons-in-law William Earle Dodge, Sr. and Daniel James. The latter two ran Phelps, James & Co., the part of the ...
upgraded the railroad for proposed resumed mining at Ajo.[
The railroad passes through the Barry M. Goldwater Air Force Range.]
References
External links
The Tucson, Cornelia and Gila Bend Railroad
(abandonedrails.com)
{{Maricopa County, Arizona
Defunct Arizona railroads