{"id":47681,"date":"2021-03-30T09:51:29","date_gmt":"2021-03-30T15:51:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/dsng-celebrates-40-years-as-tourist-draw-in-southwest-colorado\/"},"modified":"2021-03-30T15:51:29","modified_gmt":"2021-03-30T15:51:29","slug":"dsng-celebrates-40-years-as-tourist-draw-in-southwest-colorado","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/dsng-celebrates-40-years-as-tourist-draw-in-southwest-colorado\/","title":{"rendered":"D&SNG celebrates 40 years as tourist draw in Southwest Colorado"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"A
A Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad train stops Wednesday to take on water in Hermosa. The railroad is marking its 40th year this week from switching from the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad to the D&SNG, which has become a major tourist draw for Southwest Colorado.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Forty years ago, the historic Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad faced an uncertain future.<\/p>\n

The heyday of hauling gold, silver and other metals from the mines around Silverton to be processed in Durango had long since passed, and while tourism was on the rise, it just wasn\u2019t clear who would lead the railroad into a new era.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost people thought the branch wasn\u2019t going to survive and never find a buyer,\u201d said Jeff Johnson, D&SNG general manager.<\/p>\n

And then came Charles E. Bradshaw Jr., a Florida businessman with a vision.<\/p>\n

\u201cCharles Bradshaw was the right guy at the right time to save this railroad,\u201d said Al Harper, who took over ownership of the D&SNG from Bradshaw in the 1990s. \u201cIt was perfect.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Jeff
Jeff Ellingson, museum curator at the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, discusses Charles E. Bradshaw Jr., shown in the picture, who bought and saved the railroad 40 years ago.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Jeff
Jeff Ellingson, left, museum curator at the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, said one of the first things Charles E. Bradshaw Jr. did when he purchased the railroad 40 years ago was to remove the diamond stacks from the locomotives and &#x201c;throw the Hollywood versions of the stacks into the scrap pile.&#x201d; Ellingson is pictured with Jeff Johnson, general manager of the D&SNG, on Tuesday at the rail yard.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

This week marks 40 years since Bradshaw took over the line, which was then part of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, and subsequently renamed the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.<\/p>\n

The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad first reached Durango in summer 1881 (140 years ago) and arrived in Silverton the next year, as part of a larger network of rail lines across the West.<\/p>\n

But after World War II, and as mining around Silverton waned, business for the railroad started to decline, and lines across the West started to disappear. In 1968, the last train ran from Alamosa to Durango, via Chama, New Mexico.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe railroad was isolated \u2026 and they had to figure out how to sustain the railroad in Durango,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cDurango had to be self-sufficient.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jim Mayer was the conductor on that last ride from Chama to Durango on Dec. 6, 1968. Emotions, at the time, were mixed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was an interesting day,\u201d Mayer said. \u201cWe really didn\u2019t realize it was the last run until we arrived in Durango. We went into history as the last train to come over those tracks. It was a quiet time.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 1964, the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad made an attempt to abandon the route from Durango to Silverton, which was thwarted, in part, by lobbying from community members.<\/p>\n

By the 1970s, the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad was seeking a new owner. The railroad company was still running to major cities, but it wasn\u2019t interested in maintaining the Silverton line for antiquity\u2019s sake, Johnson said.<\/p>\n

Bradshaw was recognized as a suitor. Over the ensuing years, he explored buying the train, even making incognito trips to Durango and Silverton to get a feel for the communities and the railroad\u2019s place there.<\/p>\n

After highways started to be built throughout the West, tourism and vacationing to the region became much more popular, Johnson said. Then, the D&SNG gained some notoriety after appearing in several Westerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn movies and lore, the West was a fun theme,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cIt was capturing the imagination of people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bradshaw recognized the potential and wanted to set up the D&SNG as a family-friendly, tourist attraction.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe made it a wonderful place for families and children, and created a family atmosphere where there\u2019s something for everyone,\u201d Harper said.<\/p>\n

Amos Cordova was hand-selected by Bradshaw to help.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was almost like starting a new railroad,\u201d Cordova said. \u201cIt was quite a challenge and it all fell on Jim (Mayer) and I.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cordova started working for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad in 1950, with stints on the line at Chama and Farmington. In 1961, there was an opening in Durango, and he took it. Though he retired about 20 years ago, he still lives here.<\/p>\n

Mayer, for his part, graduated high school in 1963 and tried to get a job at the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. Though he was only 17, he was able to get a job and went on to work in the railroad business for 45 years.<\/p>\n

\"Jeff
Jeff Johnson, general manager of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, in front of a sign that Charles E. Bradshaw Jr. put on the Durango depot after buying and renaming the railroad 40 years ago.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

In 1981, the pair was tasked with hiring a new crew for the D&SNG and reenvision its purpose. On March 25, 1981, Mayer said he and Cordova met Bradshaw at the Strater Hotel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a moment in history,\u201d he said. \u201cWe came together and discussed plans.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the time, the railroad was running only two trains a day from the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend to early October. Bradshaw wanted to increase runs and the number of trains up to Silverton.<\/p>\n

But that all required a lot of work and money for upgrades to infrastructure. Bradshaw, whose family attained its wealth through citrus farms in Florida, was the right man for the job, Johnson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe had a vision for it, and the financial wherewithal, to make it happen,\u201d Johnson said.<\/p>\n

Indeed, the D&SNG found new life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the community was excited,\u201d Cordova said. \u201cThey were afraid (before Bradshaw purchased it) they were going to lose the railroad.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the mid-1990s, as Bradshaw was approaching his late 60s, he started to look for an heir and found Harper.<\/p>\n

\u201cCharlie said, \u2018You should buy it,\u2019\u201d Harper said. \u201cI came out here and I fell in love with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Jeff
Jeff Johnson, general manager of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, looks over one of the coal burning locomotives Tuesday that is being converted to an oil-burning locomotive.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Harper, with the financial help of Bradshaw, took over the D&SNG, and he, too, realized even more needed to be done to attract families. So, he started offering events such as the Polar Express and attractions like the train museum.<\/p>\n

Now, the D&SNG is a virtually year-round attraction that has become one of the biggest economic draws in Southwest Colorado.<\/p>\n

In a normal summer, the D&SNG will take thousands of tourists from Durango to Silverton. With the COVID-19 pandemic, capacity has been limited, but officials hope things soon return to normal.<\/p>\n

Jack Llewellyn, director of the Durango Chamber of Commerce, said as the region economically rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic, the D&SNG will play a critical role as one of the primary economic drivers for the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving the train operate, and out of the downtown depot, will have a positive impact on all businesses,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Indeed, Harper, who is the third owner of the railroad, and the only one whose family has lived in Durango, said the D&SNG hitting the 40-year mark is a time of reflection, but also a time to look forward.<\/p>\n

\"A
A Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad train being pulled by two locomotives Friday near Shalona Hill. The doubleheader pulling extra cars is led by an engine converted to burn oil.<\/span>Jerry McBride\/Durango Herald<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

As drought continually straps the region, in recent years, the D&SNG has diversified its fleet with more diesel and oil-burning locomotives, which pose less of a fire risk than traditional coal-burning engines.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to be realists, times are changing,\u201d Harper said. \u201cAnd our goal is to make sure this railroad is here for generations to come. We don\u2019t want anything that could end the life of this great American treasure. That\u2019s our No. 1 goal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Railroad service to Silverton (which for the first time in the line\u2019s history was halted last summer because of the pandemic) is expected to resume May 22.<\/p>\n

jromeo@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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