26-701: The Denver and Salt Lake Railway (D&SL) was a U.S. railroad company located in Colorado . It was incorporated in 1902 as the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific (DN&P) Railway with the goal of connecting Denver, Colorado with Salt Lake City, Utah . It underwent numerous reorganizations throughout its financially troubled history and, by the time it was acquired in 1931 by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW or Rio Grande), it had advanced only as far west as Craig, Colorado . After its acquisition, it
52-468: A female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.05. In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.5% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
78-639: A route via Indian Canyon (which currently provides the route of U.S. Route 191 into the basin). This route would connect to the Central Corridor near Soldier Summit . List of United States railroads About 700 railroads operate common carrier freight service in the United States. There are about 160,141 mi (257,722 km) of railroad track in the United States, nearly all standard gauge . Reporting marks are listed in parentheses. Craig, Colorado Craig
104-640: A tunnel underneath the pass but funding was not available at the time. The DN&P climbed to Rollins Pass using a series of switchbacks with a 4% grade at many locations; tunnels at various places as well as huge loops were also needed so as to get over the pass. At the time, it was the highest mainline railroad ever constructed in North America ; Rollins Pass was entered into the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 for its railroad related engineering feats. Small rail stops at Corona at
130-521: Is 101 °F (38 °C), which occurred first on July 9, 2021, July 10, 2021, and most recently July 17, 2023, while the record low is −51 °F (−46 °C), which occurred on February 6, 1989. As of the census of 2000, there were 9,189 people, 3,525 households, and 2,432 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,886.6 inhabitants per square mile (728.4/km ). There were 3,851 housing units at an average density of 790.6 units per square mile (305.3 units/km ). The racial makeup of
156-525: Is a home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Moffat County, Colorado , United States. The city population was 9,060 at the 2020 United States Census . Craig is the principal city of the Craig, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area . Founded by William H. Tucker, Craig was incorporated as a city on July 15, 1908. The town was named for one of the town's financial backers, Reverend William Bayard Craig. Craig became
182-517: Is available at the Yampa Valley Airport , located near the town of Hayden , 15 miles (24 km) east of Craig. Steamboat Springs Transit's regional bus service has multiple daily roundtrips between Craig and Steamboat Springs via Hayden, Milner, and Steamboat II, while CDOT's Bustang Outrider intercity bus service has one daily Craig–Denver roundtrip. Craig is, according to the local chamber of commerce, " Elk Hunting Capital of
208-610: Is still in use today. In Utah, the unfinished portion of the Denver and Salt Lake Railroad would have passed through the Uinta Basin en route to Salt Lake. The Uinta basin has extensive oil shale resources. To take better advantage of this oil shale, multiple proposals to build a Uinta Basin Rail line connecting the basin to the national rail network have been made by both public and private interests, including multiple proposals made during 1915–1920. Some of these proposals involve
234-504: Is studying state-run passenger train service between Denver and Craig via Winter Park and Steamboat Springs . U.S. 40 is the primary east–west highway serving Craig, while Colorado State Highway 13 runs south to Interstate 70 and north to the Wyoming border, where it becomes Wyoming State Highway 789 and eventually connects with Interstate 80 . Craig-Moffat Airport is the local airfield. Scheduled passenger jet airline service
260-789: The Royal Gorge . The Denver business community wanted its own "Air Line" west of the city to connect directly with Salt Lake City, and the railway’s president, David Moffat, vigorously directed the DN&;P Railway efforts to that goal. Construction began in December 1902 as the line headed west out of Denver and then started north up the face of the Front Range of the Rockies towards Boulder before turning west when it reached South Boulder Canyon. Chief Engineer H.A. Sumner, needing to enter
286-469: The last of Sumner’s railroad engineering masterpieces, the three mile long traverse of Gore Canyon . Built on the side of the canyon wall, the railroad track is the only way through the canyon (other than whitewater rafting the Colorado River), and was considered a "monumental achievement" in its day. The road then continued west to State Bridge, where it then turned north to Steamboat Springs in
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#1732772528773312-550: The poverty line , including 10.5% of those under age 18 and 6.5% of those age 65 or over. Craig is the terminus of a Union Pacific Railroad (UP) branch line that connects with the UP main line at Bond . The line was originally built by the Denver and Salt Lake Railway to connect Denver with Salt Lake City but was only completed as far west as Craig. As of August 2024 , the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT)
338-722: The D&;SL at Bond on the Colorado River . This project, which was completed in 1934, finally gave Denver its direct rail line to Salt Lake City. In 1947, the D&SL was completely absorbed into the D&RGW, which in turn was taken over by the Southern Pacific in 1988 and finally the Union Pacific RR in 1996. Other than the Rollins Pass section, the entirety of the original DS&L railroad route
364-575: The Denver and Salt Lake Railroad. Reorganized as the Denver & Salt Lake Railway in 1926, the DS&;L was acquired by the D&RGW in 1931 along with the Denver & Salt Lake Western Railroad (a company in name only), whose sole function was to acquire the rights to build a 40-mile (64-km) connection between the two railroads. In 1932, the D&RGW began construction of the Dotsero Cutoff, from Dotsero (east of Glenwood Springs ) to connect to
390-483: The Uinta Basin line as a top priority for a freight rail corridor. The study noted the strain the lack of rail access is placing on highways that serve the basin, and the price disadvantage caused by lack of rail access compared to other oil producing regions with rail. The study identified multiple possible rail corridors, including some similar to the originally proposed D&SL route, but stated their preference as
416-744: The Yampa River) and Peck's Store (a one-room trading post). In the 1970s and early 1980s, the largest power generation plant in Colorado and several coal mines were constructed near Craig. At the 2020 United States Census , the city had a total area of 3,246 acres (13.138 km ), all of which was land. Under the Köppen climate classification , Craig has a humid continental climate ( Dfb ). Summer days are hot with cool nights and very high diurnal temperature variation , while winters are cold and snowy with lows near zero. The record high temperature
442-717: The canyon area as high as possible but still maintain a 2% grade, gained the necessary altitude via the Big Ten Curve and some eight tunnels. As a bonus, his routing scheme along the front range provided rail passengers majestic views of Denver and its surrounding countryside. By 1903, the tracks reached the Tolland area just east of the Continental Divide where Sumner’s second major engineering feat involved crossing Rollins Pass at an elevation of 11,680 feet (3,560 m). Originally, Moffat had planned to build
468-402: The city was 92.56% White , 0.30% African American , 0.96% Native American , 0.42% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 3.84% from other races , and 1.89% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.80% of the population. There were 3,525 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were married couples living together, 9.6% had
494-640: The constructing more of the proposed route of the former D&SL into Utah. In 1984, the Deseret Power Railroad was built to connect a coal mine in Colorado with a power plant in Utah. The line follows a small portion of the proposed D&SL route, but is completely isolated from the national rail network . In 2015, the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) completed a study on the state of Utah's rail infrastructure that identified
520-563: The county seat when Moffat County was created out of the western portion of Routt County on February 27, 1911. In the same area as Craig, at the confluence of the Yampa River (then known as the Bear River) and Fortification Creek, were previous towns known as Yampa (as early as 1885) and Windsor (as early as 1878). In 1878, the area consisted of a number of ranches and at least two businesses: Himley's Ferry (which allowed crossing of
546-418: The top of the pass and at Arrow, 11 miles to the west, had restaurants and lodging which housed workers keeping the rail line free of snow in winter. Despite this, trains were often stranded for several days during heavy winter snows. In the spring of 1905, the tracks were completed on the western side of the divide to Fraser, and from there, the line went through Granby, Hot Sulphur Springs, and Byers Canyon to
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#1732772528773572-468: The tunnel was 'holed' through on July 7, 1927, and formally turned over to the railroad on February 26, 1928. Moffat unfortunately never saw the tunnel that was named in his honor, as he had died in 1911 while in New York City, trying unsuccessfully to raise money to continue railroad construction. One year after Moffat’s death, the railroad was placed in receivership, and in 1913 it was reformed as
598-569: The winter of 1909. By 1913, it arrived at what would turn out to be its final destination, Craig in Moffat County, Colorado . The trials and tribulations of railroading over Rollins Pass were solved in 1927 with the completion of the Moffat Tunnel , which cut through the Continental Divide under James Peak . This 6.2-mile (10.0 km) long bore is 9,239 feet (2,816 m) above sea level at its apex. Fifty miles west of Denver,
624-409: Was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 41,091, and the median income for a family was $ 45,504. Males had a median income of $ 38,038 versus $ 21,806 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 18,140. About 6.9% of families and 8.6% of the population were below
650-504: Was connected to the D&RGW main to give the D&RGW a more direct route to Denver via the eastern half of the DS&L. The portions of the D&SL still in use today comprise the Moffat Tunnel Subdivision of Union Pacific Railroad 's Central Corridor , and Amtrak’s California Zephyr uses a portion of the former D&SL between Denver and Bond . When the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific (DN&P) Railway
676-540: Was first incorporated in July 1902 by David H. Moffat , Walter S. Cheesman , William Gray Evans , Charles J. Hughes, Jr., George E. Ross-Lewin, S.M. Perry and Frank P. Gibson, Denver had been bypassed by the Union Pacific Railroad which reached Salt Lake City, Utah , via Cheyenne, Wyoming , and by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW), which ran from Pueblo, Colorado , west through
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