Colorado Narrow Gauge Railroads

Colorado has a rich history of narrow gauge railroads which carried people and goods to and from the mining, lumber and farm towns of the Rocky Mountains. These railroads include

  • the Book Cliff Railroad
  • the Boston Coal and Fuel Railroad
  • the Canon City and Cripple Creek Railroad
  • the Colorado and Southern Railroad
  • the Colorado Central Railroad
  • the Colorado Eastern Railroad
  • the Colorado and Northwestern Railroad
  • the Crystal River Railroad
  • the Crystal River and San Juan Railroad
  • the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad
  • the Denver and Middle Park Railroad
  • the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad
  • the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
  • the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad
  • the Durango and Silverton Railroad
  • the Florence and Cripple Creek Railroad
  • the Georgetown Loop Railroad
  • the Red Mountain Railroad
  • the Rio Grande Southern Railroad
  • the Rio Grande Western Railroad
  • the Silverton, Gladstone and Northerly Railroad
  • the Silverton Northern Railroad
  • the Silverton Railroad Company
  • the Uintah Rail Road


Fragments of these mountain railroads exists today as modern standard gauge railroads, or Steam Locomotive powered tourist trains (such as the above mentioned Durango and Silverton Railroad, Cumbres and Toltec Railroad and the Georgetown Loop Railroad Railroads).

Here you will find details about each railroad, the people who created and ran them, the places they went to, the obstacles they faced, the equipment they used (including lettering and paint guides) and books related to this subject.