Alpine Tunnel snow sheds

[Don Gustavson II]

In the picture "looking from one snow shed towards another". Does that second snow shed lead into the Alpine tunnel? (West portal I would guess) Or is this another tunnel?

[Jeff Young]

Hi Don,

Yes, the second shed is at the west portal of Alpine tunnel.

Cheers,
Jeff.

[South Park]

  OK, so let me toss some history and personal theories out there ....

  The insulator shown in the photo saw production from 1878 to 1910 or so.

The photo is dated 1884.

The D&RG Marshall Pass line was completed in 1881 (?), removing them
from any interest in using the DSP&P line up Chalk Creek (?)

  Yet, this very typical D&RG insulator shows up in qty. right there at the tunnel
and nowhere else along the South Park line.

  Any connection ?

  Or, it could just be a fluke, related to the UP ownership and a small supply of
these insulators got shipped to the reroute job ?  Western Union also played into
the history here, and could have been the source, although all the "blobtop" size/
type pieces I have found along the South Park line are 126.4 style Hemingrays.

  Note the different profile.  Photos exist of these on both the Estabrook and St.
Elmo depots as well.

[John Schapekahm]

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[South Park]

  Well, my thought was that in my foggy memory, I recall details of the overlap agreement
brokered by Jay Gould, that the South Park supported X-amount toward the D&RG for use
of the Buena Vista-to-Leadville access, and the D&RG did the same for access to the Gunnison
line.  

  Of course, Palmer had devious plans to get around this with the Marshall Pass line, but I
am left wondering if the D&RG did not bring a barrel of insulators from their stash to do some
work as part of their "support" for use of the Alpine Pass line ???

  I have found it odd that the South Park was not heavily populated with Brookfield glass,
as Brookfield was the largest producer of glass insulators before 1900, but it seems a Hemingray
sales rep had the ear of a South Park buyer for many years and Brookfield never got their
foot in the door.  As a result, those Brookfield blobtops are a real anomaly on the South Park
lines.  I wonder how they got there ???  Gotta be a good story lost to the ages in there somewhere !