Como water tanks.

[Jeff Ramsey]

Hello all. I would like to soon start working on a set of drawings for the water tank that was next to the roundhouse in Como. I am interested if anyone has any information or images they could share on this forum. Posted are my few images I can go by.
.

[Ken Martin]

Jeff,

There are drawings of the Como tank in "Colorado Railroad Structures" Vol. 1 by Russ Collman and Klaas Gunnink 1987.

It was a standard 47,000 gal tank.

Ken Martin

[Jim Courtney]

Also check the "Files" tab on the main C&Sn3 blog page. There are C&S Common Standards drawings of both the small and large C&S water tanks.

Jim

[Jeff Ramsey]

Thanks Ken. I will see if CRRMs library has a copy of that book as. I don't have a copy. I have seen the drawings in the file section. I know that the upper tank was 47,500 gals but the base of the tank was unique (So was the tank at Jefferson) and that is what I am trying to find info and images on.

[Southpark]

In light of the "Como news" and this topic on the Como water tanks, does anyone have any idea how the C&S disposed of their water rights for the Como tanks, or other tanks?  The South Park land area surface and sub-surface water rights are now very tightly controlled.
Tom Klinger

[Rick Steele]

Hi Jeff,

From what I was able to ascertain, the second tank at Como, after the collapse of the first one, came from the abandoned-in-place standard gauge line from Falcon to Pueblo Junction on the old D&NO line. The exact location escapes me right now.

Rick

[Robert McFarland]

Didn't Joe Crea do an article and plan on the Jefferson Tank in the NG&SL Gazette?

[Jim Courtney]

There is this photo of the Como yard taken by the 1929 DWB Special:



In Digerness, The Mineral Belt, Volume II


A blurry enlargement:





No spout is visible -- was there a stand pipe somewhere in the round house area?

Jim

[ComoDepot]

Southpark wrote

In light of the "Como news" and this topic on the Como water tanks, does anyone have any idea how the C&S disposed of their water rights for the Como tanks, or other tanks?  The South Park land area surface and sub-surface water rights are now very tightly controlled.
Tom Klinger

There is a Como Water District, basically the rights from the spring by the High School. I sort of assumed the water rights reverted to the original/subsequent land owners?

Wondered where they obtained the water from? I have heard talk of a pipe from the spring, from the O'Neil ditch and from a pump house presumably up by the original mines, but none of those would work when it is cold.

Never seen or heard mention of a well. And do not see how a well would have kept the tank full.

I remember being told it was not good boiler water and locomotives would not normally use it, presumably the Stationary Boiler had no choice.

Intrigued where the water came from in the winter, must have used a lot.

[Jeff Ramsey]

Thank You Jim for the enlargement. Was looking for that image.

[Keith Hayes]

Interesting that the frame for the spout is in place at the near tank, but with no spout; the spout is clearly visible on the distant tank to the south (track west).

I wonder if the far tank was the one used, as this is on the lead to the roundhouse. Outbound locos would coal up, then proceed to the tank for water and return north for their train. Did the Leadville Passenger exchange locos at Como? Surely the train could not make it from Pine Grove to Dickey on one load of coal? This would require the loco to uncouple from the train, move forward past the switch, back to the coal dock, coal, move forward, water, then back up and couple to the train. And perform the air test. Seems like adding a fresh steed already coaled and watered would save a lot of time.

Just saying.

So...why have a giant tank next to the roundhouse with no spout? Was this fire protection? The wood section of the roundhouse has not burned yet, and the subsequent conflagration was not at all minimized by the proximity of the tank. I don't recall a standpipe at the roundhouse leads. Was the shop boiler hard piped?

[Todd Hackett]

Jim Courtney wrote

...A blurry enlargement:...

This one isn't much better, but it isn't from a halftone. I copied this using a 35mm camera from a print that Alex Hailey had, probably in the mid-1980s.

[Jim Courtney]

This is a great thread, I'm learning new stuff here.

I spent a rainy afternoon yesterday browsing through my C&S books looking for photos of the Como water tank(s):



Likely early 1920s, Park County Local History Archives

An enlargement of a cleaner photo of the one Jeff posted above.




A.A. Anderson collection, in the Klingers' C&S Higline Memories . . .

Jeff, should you chose to model winter, it doesn't much matter as to the details of the support posts and frost box, as everything is pretty much covered by ice. Tom Klinger notes that the ice was chipped away by Como residents to make ice cream in the early summer.




Richard B Jackson photo, dated August, 1929,  in Ferrell's C&Sng



Until Rick Steele's post above, I had no idea that the original Como "roundhouse" tank collapsed and was replaced by a tank from the unused standard gauge Falcon line:


Richard B Jackson photo, dated July 9, 1937, in Ferrell's C&Sng

The "new" round house tank is in place by 1936, with conical roof and spout. Is it just me or does the tank look smaller, like the 30,000 gallon variety? The tank sides look vertical rather than tapering in from the bottom up.




R.H. Kindig photo, dated 1936, in the Klingers' C&S Platte Canyon Memories . . .

The tank portion of the new tank behind the coal car. Does the tank have retaining rods instead of bands? And is the roof octagonal rather than conical? Neat filial at the top of the roof!



For what it's worth, two photos of the "south" water tank:


September 1938, Robert Schoppe Collection,in the Klingers' South Park. Gunnison Division Memories . . .



Ed Haley photo, 1940s, in the Klingers' South Park. Gunnison Division Memories . . .

[Jeff Ramsey]

Thanks Jim, there was a couple of images I hadn't seen before. As far a modeling the Como tank in winter we really plan to model the upper tank in all four seasons in 1:1 scale in the era of circa 1900-1920ish while this tank still had its spout. We have about half the hoops and might know where to get the water / icecicles.  

[Jeff Ramsey]

Thanks Todd, your image gives a hint to the number of the floor joists for the tub.

[Jim Courtney]

Sounds like an opportunity for more Como work sessions, for many summers to come.

If Jeff can fly in from Ireland, I certainly should be able to make the trip from Puget Sound (given I can let my wife have a nice visit with her sister in nearby Conifer every summer).

Now if we can get Chris to make the trip from New Zealand. He can even bring along his goats--surely they would enjoy the summer pastures of the South Park.

[Jeff Ramsey]

That all sounds great. Worked with Jeff in Como year before last and I did not realize who he was until about the day was done. DUH.. Hopefully we shall work again.

[South Park]

  Jim,  Do you really look like your profile picture ?  

[Jim Courtney]

Actually, about 40 years ago, I did . . .

[Chris Walker]

The "new" round house tank is in place by 1936, with conical roof and spout. Is it just me or does the tank look smaller, like the 30,000 gallon variety? The tank sides look vertical rather than tapering in from the bottom up.

Jim, the new tank is taller in the support columns and that roof appears to have twelve segments, a dodecagon to me, but I'm upsidedown!

And I'll gratefully accept $US donations to fund an 11th trip to Colorado....   I'm currently way short the $8000 needed.