Re: Como Roundhouse Addition

Posted by Jim Courtney on Aug 21, 2017; 5:44am
URL: http://c-sng-discussion-forum.254.s1.nabble.com/Como-Roundhouse-Addition-tp9120p9199.html

No Mike,

This is exactly the kind of oral history that I've been trying to tease out, to better understand how things were operated on a daily basis.

The written texts describe the calamity of the 1910 shut downs and layoffs in a way to suggest that Como was a "ghost" division point, nothing but an empty roundhouse and sparse facilities with little in the way of human infrastructure to support the railroad.

So, if locomotives had minor mechanical issues when tying up at Como or Leadville, there was at least a small roundhouse crew to make minor repairs and to service the locomotives. At the two terminals, mainline engine crews did not service their locomotives (coaling, watering, sanding, turning). Once they tied up at the roundhouses, they were off, either heading home, commuting home to Como or (in the case of the east end engine and train crews) walking to a boarding house.  This was not clear to me before.

Do you have any idea where the east end crews and the west end train crews spent the night, while laying over in Como? Was there a designated railroad structure or bunkhouse, or did they use a private boarding house? The hotel next to the depot? Where did they take their meals?

Thanks for all your insightful posts.  What might seem obvious to you, usually fills some of the holes in my understanding of our favorite narrow gauge railroad.

You are of the generation that collected the oral histories of the railroad, from the men that operated it. Please don't let this information get lost as we all grow older and pass on. Post as many of those stories and recollections here, about the best place currently in existence, to preserve them for the next generations of C&S fans.

I learn something new from everything you and others post.

Jim