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New Elk Mine Bridge Repair and Replacement Project <br />arcadis.com <br />New Elk Mine Cultural Report_TB_Rev030722 NOT FOR PUBLIC DISCLOSURE 11 <br />3 HISTORIC CONTEXT <br />The southern division of the C&W is located entirely within Las Animas County and includes the former <br />railroad grade within the study area, described above, which extends westward from the Jansen Rail <br />Yard, around the southeast and southern shore of Trinidad Lake, and along the Purgatoire River and <br />Picketwire Valley to the former Allen Mine (present-day New Elk River Mine) approximately one mile east <br />of Stonewall. While the rails, ties, and other track components have been removed from most of the <br />railroad corridor, the railroad ROW is still visible and clear, and associated bridges and culverts remain in <br />their original locations. With the exception of the segment of the former C&W between the Jansen Rail <br />Yard and Madrid, which was rerouted to the southeast and south along Trinidad Lake in 1975, the C&W <br />retains its integrity of location, overall setting, design, materials (in terms of bridges and culverts), feeling, <br />and association. <br />Outside of the study area, the extent of the southern division of the C&W includes several branch lines <br />that were established early in its history, including the Primero Branch, which traveled north from <br />Segundo along Smith Canyon and operated from 1901 until the 1930s; the Weston to Tercio Station <br />branch and associated but short-lived Cuatro branch, which operated from 1902 until the 1950s; the <br />original C&W main line route between Jansen Rail Yard and Madrid, most of which is submerged beneath <br />Trinidad Lake; and any remnants of sidings and rail yards associated with coke ovens and other mining <br />facilities that may be extant. As these areas are outside of the current study area, their condition and <br />integrity are unknown. <br />3.1 History of the Southern Division of the Colorado and Wyoming <br />Railroad <br />The southern division of the C&W is a former railroad that was established by the Colorado Fuel & Iron <br />Company (CF&I) in 1899 to deliver coal and other products from its coal mines to its coke ovens, and <br />then connect with other railroads to carry its products to larger distant markets. The corridor is <br />approximately 31 miles long. Traveling from east to west, the former C&W corridor begins approximately <br />2 miles west of Trinidad at the Jansen Rail Yard and foot of Trinidad Dam, then travels southeast around <br />the southeast corner of Trinidad Lake before turning westward along the south shore of Trinidad Lake <br />and over Long and Madrid Canyons. West of Trinidad Lake, the former C&W corridor generally follows <br />the course of the Purgatoire River and SR-12 through Picketwire Valley, traveling south of Tijeras, <br />through Valdez and Segundo, south of Lorencito, through Cordova Plaza and Weston, and south of <br />Zamara and Vigil. From south of Vigil, the former C&W corridor passes through Stonewall Valley and <br />terminates at the former Allen Mine, approximately one mile east of Stonewall. <br />The southern division of the former C&W was originally constructed between 1900 and 1902 by the CF&I <br />and later expanded to Allen Mine in 1951. The CF&I was a large industrial company formed by <br />consolidated several coal, iron, steel, and fuel companies and mining operations. The beginning of CF&I <br />started in 1872, when several subsidiary companies, including the Central Colorado Improvement, the <br />Southern Colorado and Coal Town, and the Colorado Coal and Steel Works, were created by the Denver <br />& Rio Grande Railway to secure natural resources for the production of iron and steel (Howell n.d.). In <br />1880, these companies were consolidated into the Colorado Coal and Iron Company, which subsequently <br />merged with the Colorado Fuel Company in 1892, forming the CF&I.