Silverton Railroad

The Silverton Railroad, now defunct, was an American 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge railroad constructed between Silverton, Colorado and mining districts near Red Mountain Pass, Colorado.

The Silverton Railroad is remembered for the innovative solutions to difficult engineering problems presented by the steep, mountainous terrain which were devised by the railroad's chief locating engineer, Charles Wingate Gibbs – the Chattanooga Loop, the depot in a wye at Red Mountain, and a covered turntable on the main track at Corkscrew Gulch – and for the unusual and expensive annual passes presented by the owner, Otto Mears.

Chattanooga Loop – Gibbs achieved a 550-foot rise in the line over a quarter-mile straight-line distance by a detour from Mineral Creek up Mill Creek gulch, with in a 30-degree (194-foot radius) curve looping 200 degrees at the end, and returning to Mineral Creek, all on a 5-percent grade.

Red Mountain Wye – extremely limited level space and hard rock at Red Mountain Town towards Guston, precluding a balloon loop or turntable for turning trains, led Gibbs to plan a wye with short arms able to accommodate only a locomotive and two cars, and to place the station house on the only remaining flat area, in the center of the wye.

Corkscrew Gulch Turntable – to solve the operational difficulties presented by the switchback at Corkscrew Gulch, Gibbs placed a turntable on the main track at the junction of the lower and upper arms of the switchback, allowing the locomotive to work downgrade of ore cars for safety and efficiency. The 50-foot turntable was big enough only for the locomotive, and the cars were fed through by gravity in both directions. The turntable was covered with a snowshed to allow operations as deep into winter as possible.

Railroad Passes of Otto Mears – Railroads until 1906 commonly issued free printed paper or card travel passes to such people as employees, their families, shippers, clergymen, politicians, judges and others whose influence was sought in the railroads' favor. Mears wanted to make the passes issued by his railroads special. The passes for the Silverton Railroad in 1888 were printed on buckskin, in 1889 were of stamped silver, and the 1890 passes were watch fobs.