Show TO STANDARD guage MARSHALL PASS TRAC K denver september 17 1912 announcement no has just been made by president bush and vice president crown brown that at a recent meeting of the hoard board of directors of tho the denver RII BH orande grande railroad Hall road company new york city it was decided to standard gauge the present narrow ow gauge line ow over marshall pass between calida salida and montrose colo this involves widening the gauge from three feet to tour four feet eight and a halt half inches tor for a distance of 0 miles at a cost of 0 approximately from issa to 1890 transcontinental irakis of the denver 81 ali grande G were iero operated over marshall pass par but in the year last mentioned the standard gauge line by way ot of tennessee pass and Gle nood springs to grand was constructed and since then through trains have been operated over the later route and the marshall pass narrow gauge line has been ro reserved served especially for tourists and sightseers and such local freight as originates lu in the narrow marrow gauge territory I 1 the marshall pass route famed the world over for its scenic attractions crosses the continental divide at an altitude of foot feet and the new atan standard dArd gauge line will cross at the same elevation and preserve the many scenic attractions of the old route mrshall pass by reason or being the first Is perhaps the becat known crossing of tho the continental divide this comparatively low paid was discovered in 1871 by lieutenant W L marshall at that time attached to the geological survey now brigadier general ot 0 tho the united states army retired and a resident of washington D C the pass was wag named after lieutenant marshall the decision of the directors to appropriate prop so large a sum of money was arrived at in order to properly take care of the rapidly increasing transcontinental traffic augmented by the opening ot of the western pacific railway the pacific coast extension of 0 the denver and rio grande as well as to take care of the enormous tonnage in fruit coal grain cattle and ore traffie traffic being developed on the western slope of the rocky mountains in colorado radon nd thereby increase the roads transportation facilities by having two standard gauge lines jines through the rocky mountains A large engineering force 1 is now in the field making surveys and rectify ing the ligament of such portions of the narrow marrow gauge as are unsuitable for standard gauge operation on account of the curvature these surveys are being rapidly made and when completed contract will be it 1 t for the new work an order will be placed in the very near future for a large number of heavy steel bridges which will be required to take the place or of the present structures which are adapted tor for narrow gauge equipment it is anticipated bat at the work will be completed within the next twelve months in time to move the 1913 fruit and potato crops of the uncompahgre and north fork valleys in colorado when the new marshall pass line Is completed the denver rio grande will have two standard gauge main lines through the rocky mountains between denver and salt lake city one by way of tennessee pass glenwood Ol enwood springs and grand junction and the other over marshall Mar shail pass through the black canon ot of the bennison Bunn Bun leon nison by way of montrose delta and grand junction |