Carson and Colorado Railroad
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The Carson and Colorado Railroad was a U.S. narrow gauge railroad that ran from Mound House, Nevada, to Keeler, California. It was incorporated on May 10, 1880, and construction on the railroad began on May 31, 1880. A track gauge of 3 ft (914 mm) was chosen to reduce cost. The Carson & Colorado began operations with a single Baldwin 4-4-0, the Candelaria. The first train arrived at Keeler on August 1, 1883. The 300-mile route reached an altitude of 7100 feet in Montgomery Pass.[1] The railroad served an arid area heavily dependent on mineral resources for economic activity. The line was reorganized as the Carson and Colorado Railway in 1892 to reduce accumulated debt.[2]
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[edit] Sale to the Southern Pacific
The Virginia & Truckee, the parent company of the Carson & Colorado, sold the line to the Southern Pacific in 1900. Silver and gold discoveries at Tonopah, Nevada and Goldfield, Nevada provided a major boost of revenues shortly after the Southern Pacific purchase.[3] The northern 140 miles from Mound House to Mina, Nevada was standard-gauged in 1905; and Carson and Colorado was merged into the Southern Pacific's narrow-gauge subsidiary, the Nevada and California Railroad.[4] The Nevada and California Railroad was reorganized into the Central Pacific Railroad in 1912.[5] Portions of the line were abandoned in the 1930s and the 1940s, and operations ceased entirely by 1960.
[edit] Locomotives
| Number | Builder | Type | Date | Works number | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st #1 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1880 | 5285 | sold to Eureka and Palisade Railroad 1907 |
| 2nd #1 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-8-0 | 1919 | 41300 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #14 acquired 1928 sold to Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad #9 1933 |
| 3rd #1 | General Electric | Diesel | 1954 | 32226 | sold 1961 |
| 2 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1881 | 5428 | scrapped 1907 |
| 1st #3 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1881 | 5430 | scrapped 1908 |
| 2nd #3 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1887 | 8791 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #3 acquired 1928 scrapped 1934 |
| 1st #4 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1881 | 55782 | sold to Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad #7 1929 |
| 2nd #4 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1899 | 17124 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #4 acquired 1928 scrapped 1934 |
| 1st #5 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1882 | 6089 | scrapped 1932 |
| 2nd #5 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1899 | 17123 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #5 acquired 1928 scrapped 1934 |
| 1st #6 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1882 | 6090 | scrapped 1907 |
| 2nd #6 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1877 | 4223 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #6 merged 1905 scrapped 1926 |
| 3rd #6 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1903 | 22020 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #6 acquired 1928 scrapped 1934 |
| 1st #7 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1883 | 6687 | scrapped 1932 |
| 2nd #7 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1903 | 22012 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #7 acquired 1928 scrapped 1935 |
| 1st #8 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1883 | 6689 | scrapped 1932 |
| 2nd #8 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1907 | 31445 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #8 acquired 1928 donated to Carson City, Nevada 1955 |
| 1st #9 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1885 | 7604 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #16 merged 1905 scrapped 1911 |
| 2nd #9 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1909 | 34035 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #9 acquired 1928 donated to Bishop, California 1960 |
| 10 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-4-0 | 1885 | 7605 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #17 merged 1905 scrapped 1933 |
| 11 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-6-0 | 1881 | 5649 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #11 merged 1905 rebuilt to 4-6-0 1924 scrapped 1934 |
| 12 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-6-0 | 1881 | 5650 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #12 merged 1905 rebuilt to 4-6-0 1924 scrapped 1934 |
| 13 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 2-8-0 | 1882 | 6157 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #13 merged 1905 scrapped 1927 |
| 14 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1886 | 7939 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #18 merged 1905 retired 1945 |
| 15 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1889 | 9929 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #22 merged 1905 scrapped 1935 |
| 16 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1886 | 7941 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #19 merged 1905 scrapped 1935 |
| 17 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1887 | 8487 | ex-South Pacific Coast Railroad #21 merged 1905 retired 1945 |
| 18 | Baldwin Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1911 | 37395 | ex-Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #12 acquired 1928 donated to Independence, California 1955 |
| 22 | Schenectady Locomotive Works | 4-6-0 | 1899 | 5399 | ex- Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad then Nevada-California-Oregon Railway #22 acquired 1929 scrapped 1949 |
[edit] Sources
[edit] References
- Turner, George (1974). Slim Rails through the Sand (3rd edition). Trans-Anglo Books. ISBN 0-87046-016-1.
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