California Zephyr Virtual Museum
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (Wikipedia site)
Diesel and Passenger Paint Schemes
Rio Grande Modeling and Historical Society
Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad (Wikipedia site)
Diesel and Passenger Paint Schemes
Rio Grande Modeling and Historical Society
D&RG logo
1970-1997
1970-1997
The Denver & Rio Grande Railway (D&RG) began in 1870, helping connect the country by rail and operating trains between Denver, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah. The line hauled passengers, coal and minerals. the company's first locomotive, Baldwin's Montezuma (photo, below) was delivered in 1871.
Between 1877 and 1880 the D&RG fought with the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad over land rights to lay their track. Each company hired lawyers and gunfighters to protect their chosen routes. In 1879 the AT&SF defended its roundhouse (where they kept its locomotives) with Bat Masterson's help. Masterson was a U.S. Marshal and famous gunfighter. However, the D&RG offered the AT&SF money to backdown, which they accepted. In 1880 the D&RG paid 1.4 million dollars for the rights to lay rail through the Royal Gorge, which eventually led to rich mining deposits and extending rail into Utah.
In late 1880, a new railroad company, the Denver & Rio Grande Western, began laying rail in Utah with the goal of connecting with the D&RG in Colorado. This goal became a reality on March 30, 1883 when the two lines met in Green River, Utah.
In 1884, after financial and leadership difficulties, the D&RG Railway was restructured and renamed the D&RG Railroad. Then in 1889 the D&RGW upgraded from narrow guage to standand guage rail and changed its name to the Rio Grande Western Railway (dropping the "Denver" from its name).
Despite the scenic terrain and popularity of these railroads profit and competition was always a concern. In 1928 the Moffat Tunnel opened, providing a 6.2 mile shortcut beneath the Continental Divide, shortening the trip by hours.
But they were still much slower than their competition and they felt they had to find a way to be faster. The D&RG's solution was its "fast freight" philosophy, which employed multiple diesel locomotives pulling short, frequent trains. This philosophy helps to explain why the D&RG, despite its proximity to one of the nation's most productive coal mining regions, retired coal-fueled steam locomotives as quickly as new replacement diesels could be purchased. By 1956, the D&RG's standard-gauge steam locomotives had been retired and scrapped. The reason for this was that unlike steam locomotives, diesel locomotives could easily be combined, using the diesels' multiple unit (MU) capabilities, to equip each train with the optimum horsepower which was needed to meet the D&RG's aggressive schedule.
The most famous passenger train in the world, the California Zephyr, begin its first run in San Francisco on March 20th, 1949 at 9:00am. The Zephyr ran from California, to Salt Lake City, through the Moffat Tunnel into Colorado, and across the country to Chicago. The trip covered 2,525 miles and took only 50 hours and 50 minutes.
For all future runs, the California Zephyr was pulled by Chicago Burlington and Quincy locomotives from Chicago to Denver, then by D&RG locos to Salt Lake City, and then by Western Pacific engines into Oakland, California.
In the 1960s rail traffic slowed greatly ue to increased interstate trucking, cheaper air travel, busses, and an improved freeway system. Profits plummeted for trains, including the California Zephyr, and railroad companies scrambled to survive. By the mid-60's, the Zephyr was losing 1.5 million dollars a year.The last run of the Zephyr was on March 20, 1970, ending on the Oakland, California end of the run, just a few miles from where it had begun 20 years and 2 days earlier.
Fortunately, the D&RGW was a maverik kind of company and continued to operate
Between 1877 and 1880 the D&RG fought with the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad over land rights to lay their track. Each company hired lawyers and gunfighters to protect their chosen routes. In 1879 the AT&SF defended its roundhouse (where they kept its locomotives) with Bat Masterson's help. Masterson was a U.S. Marshal and famous gunfighter. However, the D&RG offered the AT&SF money to backdown, which they accepted. In 1880 the D&RG paid 1.4 million dollars for the rights to lay rail through the Royal Gorge, which eventually led to rich mining deposits and extending rail into Utah.
In late 1880, a new railroad company, the Denver & Rio Grande Western, began laying rail in Utah with the goal of connecting with the D&RG in Colorado. This goal became a reality on March 30, 1883 when the two lines met in Green River, Utah.
In 1884, after financial and leadership difficulties, the D&RG Railway was restructured and renamed the D&RG Railroad. Then in 1889 the D&RGW upgraded from narrow guage to standand guage rail and changed its name to the Rio Grande Western Railway (dropping the "Denver" from its name).
Despite the scenic terrain and popularity of these railroads profit and competition was always a concern. In 1928 the Moffat Tunnel opened, providing a 6.2 mile shortcut beneath the Continental Divide, shortening the trip by hours.
But they were still much slower than their competition and they felt they had to find a way to be faster. The D&RG's solution was its "fast freight" philosophy, which employed multiple diesel locomotives pulling short, frequent trains. This philosophy helps to explain why the D&RG, despite its proximity to one of the nation's most productive coal mining regions, retired coal-fueled steam locomotives as quickly as new replacement diesels could be purchased. By 1956, the D&RG's standard-gauge steam locomotives had been retired and scrapped. The reason for this was that unlike steam locomotives, diesel locomotives could easily be combined, using the diesels' multiple unit (MU) capabilities, to equip each train with the optimum horsepower which was needed to meet the D&RG's aggressive schedule.
The most famous passenger train in the world, the California Zephyr, begin its first run in San Francisco on March 20th, 1949 at 9:00am. The Zephyr ran from California, to Salt Lake City, through the Moffat Tunnel into Colorado, and across the country to Chicago. The trip covered 2,525 miles and took only 50 hours and 50 minutes.
For all future runs, the California Zephyr was pulled by Chicago Burlington and Quincy locomotives from Chicago to Denver, then by D&RG locos to Salt Lake City, and then by Western Pacific engines into Oakland, California.
In the 1960s rail traffic slowed greatly ue to increased interstate trucking, cheaper air travel, busses, and an improved freeway system. Profits plummeted for trains, including the California Zephyr, and railroad companies scrambled to survive. By the mid-60's, the Zephyr was losing 1.5 million dollars a year.The last run of the Zephyr was on March 20, 1970, ending on the Oakland, California end of the run, just a few miles from where it had begun 20 years and 2 days earlier.
Fortunately, the D&RGW was a maverik kind of company and continued to operate
D&RGW logo 1908-1921
