CF&I Mine
Monarch was the final destination on the Monarch Branch fifteen miles west from Poncha Junction, where limestone was mined by primarily Colorado Fuel & Iron Company from the 1920s through 1950s. Until 1955, narrow gauge trains negotiated the valley and brought down the limestone in long gondola cars, to the McMyler Mechanical Transfer at Barrel to dump loads into standard gauge cars. Splitting the train in two with a pair of Mikados with 14 cars each, trains went up and down the switchbacks. In 1956, the right of way at Monarch was sold to the Colorado Fuel & Iron Co. and the line was standard gauged.

FACILITIES:

• Colorado Fuel & Iron Mine Limestone Quarry and Crusher
• 50' NG Gallows Turntable
• Wye
• Empties and Loads Tracks

MODELING:

• Scratchbuilt CF&I Mine Buildings
• Turntable from MIL-SCALE Products kit

SOURCES:

• Official Roster No.11 of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad System and the Rio Grande Southern Railroad Company, 1923, Colorado Railroad Museum.
• D&RGW Engineering Reports, Colorado Railroad Museum, 2005.

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This page last modified 9 Ocotber 2017.