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The First Passenger Train Travels through the Royal Gorge this Week in Colorado History

Today, travel experiences are marked by long lines at airports and trying to remember if you removed all the liquids in your bag over three ounces. At the same time, you have to take off your shoes and belt and remove change and metal from your pockets — all before the travelers behind you grumble and glare because you’re holding up the line. It makes you yearn for the days when traveling was something different entirely. Your suitcase wasn’t filled with wrinkle-free dresses and tennis shoes, but your finest wardrobe and jewels that you wore, back when people “dressed” for dinner aboard elegant dining cars during a multi-day sojourn aboard a train. Back then, train travel wasn’t necessarily about your final destination, it was about the people, sites, socializing and scenery along the way.

Black and white photograph of the Royal Gorge Bridge.

The iconic Royal Gorge Bridge
Scan # 10029520

The railways were instrumental in the growth and prosperity of America, because they allowed quicker access to resources in our expanding nation while drastically cutting down travel time. Railroading was at its zenith between the 1880s and 1920s for both personal passage and industry, with over 190,000 miles of track added in only 60 years.

A historical flyer advertises seasonal excursions through the Royal Gorge

Flyer advertising seasonal excursions through the Royal Gorge. Denver and Rio Grand Collection Mss.00513; scan #10044575

The first passenger train traveled through the Royal Gorge on May 7, 1879 (136 years ago this week). The Royal Gorge, outside of Cañon City in central Colorado, is one of the deepest gorges in the state. It runs for 10 miles above the Arkansas River and has been called the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas.

A group of men sabotage their competition by building a barricade on a road.

During the Royal Gorge War, it wasn’t uncommon for the competing companies to sabotage the others progress.
scan #10025088

The discovery of silver in Leadville propelled a race to gain quick access to the booming mining town. Because of its narrow base — less than 50 feet wide — only one railroad company could lay tracks. This led to a two-year battle, the “Royal Gorge War,” between the Santa Fe and the Denver & Rio Grande Western (D&RG) railroads. The level of violence was low, and the conflict was ultimately decided in court, where the“Treaty of Boston” granted primary right to the D&RG to build through the gorge. 

The railroad would prove to be more than a route to Leadville. It served as a transcontinental rail link between Denver and Salt Lake City. The D&RG was dubbed “The Scenic Line of the World,” with the passage through the Royal Gorge one of the major highlights of this trip through the Rockies. However, like so many things, train travel gave way to modernity, in this case auto and plane travel. Train service through the Royal Gorge ended in 1967, but the line reopened to tourists in 1998 during summer.

Now, the iconic Royal Gorge Bridge draws visitors to this historic location for recreation, including whitewater rafting down the Arkansas. Built in 1929, the bridge is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. To take a ride on the train or walk across the suspension bridge, visit https://www.royalgorgeroute.com/ and http://www.royalgorgebridge.com/ 

Sepia-toned historical photograph of a train in the narrow base of the Royal Gorge. A man stands beside the locomotive.

Due to the narrow base of the gorge, only one train company could lay their rails. Original photograph collection; scan #10045859

While the thought of spending days aboard a train may sound like someone’s nightmare today, maybe next time you drive through Colorado’s endlessly beautiful landscape you’ll forget for a while about the destination ahead and take some time to enjoy your surroundings.