Saturday, October 18, 2014

Roper's Snapshot Saturday No.19 | 11 Comments - Click Here :

11 Comments - Click Here :
  1. Well, at least the roundhouse is on high ground.

    Keith Hayes
    Leadville in Sn3

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  2. DPL Call Number. X-24014. Denver - 1933. Time to play I spy.
    I spy caboose #1002. The list goes on.

    http://cdm16079.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/fullbrowser/collection/p15330coll22/id/33785/rv/singleitem/rec/31

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  3. Wait, wait, there is more. I am guessing this is the 1965 flood, as it looks like the steam facilities--coal and water--are gone, but then I don't really see shiny diesels, either. Plus, I cannot recall exactly when I-25 (the Valley Highway) was built in this area. I-25 would skirt along the bottom of the image today. Where Zang's is, only the home in the triangular lot remains. The rest of the plan is now the site of the Aquarium. That densely built area to the north of the home is now a parking lot: too bad. Of course the whole shop area is now Elitch's. That is the Speer viaduct in the upper left corner, with Cherry Creek immediately above and parallel to the viaduct. I believe the cars in the upper right corner are on tracks known as, "The Jungle" for reasons I am not sure, except that this may have been a mess of dual gauge trackage as the South Park main crossed from the DUT lead in the upper left over to the C&S SP main at the right. The extreme upper right is now Auraria Parkway and the Auraria (not Aurora) campus. This is the largest college campus in Colorado, home to Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University and University of Colorado at Denver.

    Keith Hayes
    Leadville in Sn3

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  4. Roper is indeed an amazing Doggie! If you read the description on the DPL site this is a flood caused by the dam break at Castlewood Canyon, located several miles south of Franktown on old Highway 83 - a beautiful spot, btw. In other words this is yet another iteration of flooding by Cherry Creek - not particularly the South Platte. One would have to research news accounts but I'd guess this to be in the late spring. The River is pretty full probably due to snowmelt and perhaps a recent rainstorm. The Creek likely broke the dam due to rain on the Divide along the north edge of El Paso County; both North and South Cherry Creek headwater there.

    Zang Brewery is the large structure collection at the bottom of the view. To the left, across 7th Street is the Brewery's Stables which later became a furniture store. The Brewery itself burned down in 1935 iirc. The building between the main structure and the river was the power plant (with stack).

    Also of note is the Denver Gas Works with its huge collapsible tank (as seen in the 1902 Photo of C&S No. 8) near the middle of the view. Running along the lower side of the river was the West Side line - that connection between Jersey Junction and Canyon Junction of the South Park. To the left of the Brewery Stable was a Coal Yard and you can see a spur to the yard that does not show on the 1917 ICC map. To the right of the Brewery was a structure that was listed as a Carpet Cleaning Company at one time.

    There is a lot more here. But I'll leave that to others.

    BTW I traveled up and down I-25 as a kid and iirc it was late 1965 that the Interstate was completed thru Denver. Before that we used Hwy 83 to travel from Colorado Springs to see relatives in Ft. Collins. I remember the flooding of '65 as been quite damaging to Castle Rock due to Plum Creek going crazy. It was a very, very wet summer and my memories are of gray skies.

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    1. Thanks brother d. There is so much in this photo, I only wish it was a little clearer. Your parents must have liked to travel the back roads. I-25 was completed through Denver in 1958, and to the Springs in 1960. I-70 was completed through Denver in 1964.
      I'd be interested in the other things you see in the photo, not necessarily C&S related either.

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  5. Well, that explains why Rice Yard is flooded, and the area next to the Platte is undamaged--the water came from Cherry Creek. We just encountered this on Staten Island where the water damaged an area we are working on by forcing water onto the middle of the island and then backing into some buildings well away from the shore.

    What else do you spy, Darel? I have not taken the time to blow the photo up to see. I bet there are a bunch of NG cars in the Jungle.

    Keith Hayes
    Leadville in Sn3

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    1. You need to blow up the photo on the DPL site. I have a really large monitor and that makes a big difference too.
      I spy a narrow gauge locomotive steaming just to the right of the roundhouse.
      I'd like to see someone model a 40 stall roundhouse.

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  6. looks like two other cabooses up from the 1002, next track up and to the left.
    Doug J

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    Replies
    1. Good eye Doug. Some ng reefers on the track below them.
      What amazes me is how devastating and wide spread the flood is. It is basically in the entire photo.

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  7. I like the cluster of cars and employees (?) on the street between the roundhouse and shops, congregating as people do in situations like this. Lots of cars further up the street look to be driving thru the water, which may only be a foot or less judging by the wheel sets in the shop yard. I thought I saw the n.g. loco (Ridgeway stack) as well but wasn't sure, looks like it's under steam.

    Mike

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