Rainbow Route

Rainbow Route by Carl A. Skowronski. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780913582121.

Handsomely done history of the Silverton Railroad, the Silverton Northern Railroad, and the Silverton, Gladstone and Northern Railroad. Provides a fascinating and detailed look at how Otto Mears and Charles Wingate Gibbs built the railroads in the face of natural obstacles and financial troubles, kept the lines running despite government interference, and provided jobs and transportation for the mines and hundreds of thousands of residents for decades. The history of the entire San Juan mining region (from the stagecoach era on) is woven into the narrative so that the railroads are looked at in the context of their crucial importance to the mines and to the growing communities that included women and children. Illustrated throughout with a mix of vintage black and white photos (many by William H. Jackson; the one of Otto Mears and Chief Ouray of the Utes is amazing) and full color modern era photos. Includes detailed schematic scale drawings of locomotives and rolling stock which shoul