Was the El Paso & North Eastern RR an SP predecessor? If so, when did it become part of the SP? Boxcab E50
The EP&NE Railroad was built from El Paso to the TX/NM border in 1897-98, opened 1-1-1899 and operated by the EP&NE Railway. It owned no rolling stock of its own. The EP&NE Railway connected to it at the border and extended on to the SP mainline in Carrizozo, NM. All of this was owned by the El Paso & Southwestern Company which was bought and controled by Phelps, Dodge in 1904. Finally all this was sold to the Southern Pacific in 1924. This was a coal burning opperation and remained so until after WWII unlike most of the rest of the SP which converted to oil in their steamers.
Now you've made me curious. Wasn't the Phelps Dodge operation a mining (copper?) oriented company? Thanks! Boxcab E50
Yup. Copper was at that time its prime focus. The need for coal and coke in the coper smelting process was the reason they bought up the railroads mentioned. When the company faced financial problems in the 1920s they unloaded the railroads but stipulated that they still be run with coal (from their mines). The reason for the separate railroad companies for the EP&NE was because of the Texas laws requiring any railroad operating in Texas to be headquartered in Texas. Most roads got around it by setting up a separate railroad on paper and then controlling it from outside the state. The local headquarters could be only a local PO Box. That is why the EP&NE RR only went as far as the border before the name became EP&NE Railway. The SP became the T&NO at the border, ATSF became the Gulf Colorado & Santa Fe, MKT=Missouri Kansas Texas of Texas, CB&Q=Fort Worth & Denver, etc. The MoPac was very confusing and ran many different railroads in Texas with many different names.
Where did the coal and coke originate? I can't think of a source in that general region? Understand about the Mopac stuff. I've tried to unravel it a little for my train order files. What a mess! Boxcab E50
Most of it came from Dawson, New Mexico. It was a Phelps Dodge Company mining town around 15 miles northwest of Raton, NM. Back in 1917, Dawson had a population of about 6,000 people of whom 2,000 were employed in the mining business. The opperation produced 5,000 tons of coal and 500 tons of coke a day. Phelps Dodge pulled out in 1954 leaving Dawson a ghost town.
Bummer. I wonder how many people who worked all their lives there, lost everything they owned......... Boxcab E50
This was quite common out west when it came to mining towns. Folks kind of expected it. When the mine played out, it was time to pack up and go. There was no other reason for the town to be there. Most structures were not built to last and were salvaged or succumbed to nature after they were abandoned.
The Espee AC9, the only AC in the steam series that was not a cab forward, was made specifically to burn New Mexico coal. It had to do with the size of the openings in the grates. Most of Espee was converted to oil as early as 1903, but the NM coal was around for a long time after that. When the coal ran out, all were converted to oil and moved to Oregon, I think. Russell, please correct me on this. Along these lines, I think the AC9s stayed west of that high, gossamer bridge east of El Paso. Too heavy for it, but most of the AC9s were based in El Paso. I think there were only 12 or so AC9 engines.
