What should we name our railroad??? SEE SAD PLEA ON P2

[Texas Zepher]

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man

Texas Zepher, where are the towns you mentioned in relation to the towns on the map?

I found them farther north.

Good. Oh yeah, the area you were looking at on the map (Between Colorado Springs and Pueblo) is a real desert. Cactus, cactus, and more cactus. The mountains are WAY off to the west there. Of course if you back off a few years, there were three tracks through that area as Santa Fe, Rio Grande, and Colorado Southern all ran along the front range there.

[selector]

Cherokee Central? Okay, I'm tapped out.

[Texas Zepher]

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man
Thanks for the input and for driving thru Wigwam. What's in Wigwam? Not much I'm guessing. I'm going to get the map out again and take another look.

It appears to be mainly a resort on the river. It had its own little water tower (no name or anything). There was some sort of general store for the resort not open to the general public, and an open air road maintenance of way facility.

http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=39.2396&lon=-105.2543&s=50&size=s&symshow=n&datum=nad83&layer=DRG25
Here is the topo map of Wigwam.

[Texas Zepher]

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man
He [Texas Zepher] was good enough to drive thru Wigwam and wasn't impressed! PLEASE HELP!!! The poll has been edited. Thanks!*****

I didn't say I wasn't impressed. I think the area has tons of potential. I just don't want you to regret a name a few years down the road when it is harder to change. Is there any reason to rush? Choose one and use it for a bit. Say it over and over. Listen to other people say it. Use it in a railroady sentence. Ask other people what they think of when they hear it.

I'll send a note to some of the Rio Grand modeler's in the area and see if they come up with anything.

[Fergmiester]

How about the RG&P (Rio Grande & Platte)

Just a thought

Fergie

[Texas Zepher]

Here is a comment from one of the "Rio Grande" experts I sent your question to:

Based on the info you provided I would say call it the Palmer Lake
Subdivision. The DRGW and ATSF went around the west side of Palmer Lake in a crescent shaped curved. Of course it follows the double track jointline
south from Denver to Pueblo. On the real railroad it is called the
Colorado Springs Subdivision on the DRGW side and the Pikes Peak Sub on the ATSF side.

[Texas Zepher]

I had another idea you might want to think about. Instead of modeling a branch of the Rio Grande you could model a short line or regional that is either wholly owned by the D&RGW or that leases all their equipment from them. That way your railroad would be more independent but could still run/use all your Rio Grande equipment. In that context the Wigwam & Western sounds much better. You could still use all the C&S & Sante Fe stuff on the part of your layout where your railroad had running rights on the joint track to Pueblo.

Sedelia & Rio Grande Iron Range
Sedelia Iron Range & Rio Grande
Hauling ore out of the mountains west of Colo Springs to CF&I in Pueblo.

From all the names you've been throwing around I like the "Split Rock Mine CO" sounds like a great name for an industry on your line. Possibly worth a few hopper cars of their own too!

[SpaceMouse]

I couldn't read your map (you could post a link) But I like the name:

Devil's Head and Monument Railroad

[grandeman]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Texas Zepher
there were three tracks through that area as Santa Fe, Rio Grande, and Colorado Southern all ran along the front range there.

D&RGW Front Range & Platte Canyon???

A fictional westerly coal mine spur off the Joint Line just south of Sedalia, Colo.

BTW, I like the sound of Split Rock Mine.

[grandeman]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Texas Zepher

Here is a comment from one of the "Rio Grande" experts I sent your question to:

Based on the info you provided I would say call it the Palmer Lake
Subdivision. The DRGW and ATSF went around the west side of Palmer Lake in a crescent shaped curved. Of course it follows the double track jointline
south from Denver to Pueblo. On the real railroad it is called the
Colorado Springs Subdivision on the DRGW side and the Pikes Peak Sub on the ATSF side.

That sounds good but I'd feel compelled to model the lake and I'm out of room...

[SpaceMouse]

QUOTE: Originally posted by grande man

QUOTE: Originally posted by Texas Zepher

Here is a comment from one of the "Rio Grande" experts I sent your question to:

Based on the info you provided I would say call it the Palmer Lake
Subdivision. The DRGW and ATSF went around the west side of Palmer Lake in a crescent shaped curved. Of course it follows the double track jointline
south from Denver to Pueblo. On the real railroad it is called the
Colorado Springs Subdivision on the DRGW side and the Pikes Peak Sub on the ATSF side.

That sounds good but I'd feel compelled to model the lake and I'm out of room...

Put the lake either just touching the layout or painted into the backdrop.

[grandeman]

QUOTE: Originally posted by SpaceMouse



Put the lake either just touching the layout or painted into the backdrop.

I'll look this afternoon while I'm workin on the railroad...

[Texas Zepher]

Calling up an old thread because I can't e-mail Grand Man!

Grand Man ---

I went to a swap meet today and found a book called "Tracking Ghost Railroads in Colorado" by Robert Ormes.

Guess what it shows! In 1883-1890 the Rio Grande had a two mile branch south west of Salida. It is called the Lehigh Branch. It followed Indian Creek to Lehigh Gulch and served the Lehigh Coal Mine.

[grandeman]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Texas Zepher

Calling up an old thread because I can't e-mail Grand Man!

Grand Man ---

I went to a swap meet today and found a book called "Tracking Ghost Railroads in Colorado" by Robert Ormes.

Guess what it shows! In 1883-1890 the Rio Grande had a two mile branch south west of Salida. It is called the Lehigh Branch. It followed Indian Creek to Lehigh Gulch and served the Lehigh Coal Mine.

Wow, talk about thread revival! That's some cool info, TZ. We're so set into calling the RR the Platte Canyon Sub that I'm not sure we could change now. I apprieciate all your input on this. I did alot of research on the USGS map site after a few of your posts. We named several places on the RR after actual places I found on topo maps. Once again, Thanks!

[twhite]

Hm, I thought we'd all decided on the Platte Canyon Sub. Are we still thinking that? Because if not, how about this:
The railroad was originally built by the Santa Fe as part of their Denver extension, but the Rio Grande has never forgiven that rival for commandeering Raton Pass in the 1870's. So, just before your modeling era, the Rio Grande counterfieted a telegram to the Santa Fe saying that Aliens from Roswell had abducted every Santa Fe locomotive in New Mexico from Raton Pass south. The Santa Fe pulled all of their locomotives from their Platte Canyon Sub and sent them south to replace the abducted motive power, the Rio Grande sneaked in during the night, and when morning came, informed the Santa Fe that neener, neener, it now owned the trackage. So what we have now, is the DENVER AND RIO GRANDE WESTERN RETALIATION RAILROAD, (PLATTE CANYON SUB).
How's that, LOL?
Tom [:P][:P][alien]

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by espeefoamer

In the railroad building era, just about every railroad had to have "and Pacific" in its name. So I propose Crescent Pass & Pacific[:)].

"Crescent Pass & Pacific" is good because as well as having "Pacific" in the name it starts with a "C"... which became a problem in the railroad building era... I've seen an article of the 1880s or 90s (from a US RR Journal) both listing and complaining about the number of road starting with "C".

You could go one better and use "Orient" instead of Pacific as in the Kansas City, Mexico and Orient... which got a few miles down it's planned route and ran out of cash... I believe...