Re: [CBQ] Toluca, MT to Cody, WY

["cbqbill1x via groups.io" <kybillhusb=gmail.com@groups.io>]

The Burlington Route to Cody was a branch line off the main route from Lincoln, Nebraska to Billings, Montana.   It left the main line southeast of Billings at Toluca and headed southwest for 129 miles to the terminus at Cody.  Construction on the line began in the spring of 1900 and was completed Nov. 11, 1901.  Toluca was an important junction  as it connected the Toluca-Cody branch at Toluca with the Burlington line from Sheridan to Billings; the latter passed through Toluca.

Pyror Gap:

In 1899, the Big Horn Southern (a CB&Q line) built a line, connecting Toluca with Cody, Wyoming.  The line started in Toluca, Montana (along the old Hardin Road), then proceeded west to Coburn, then south towards the Pryors and the Big Horn Basin, making stops at Morin, Keiser, Pryor, Chicopee, Oswald, Crockett, Bowler, Scribner, Frannie, Mantua, Garland, Powell, Ralston, McCormick, Corbett, and Cody. Northeast of Pryor Gap, considerable difficulty was experienced in locating a suitable grade. Finally, a fairly steep grade of sixty-six feet per mile was surveyed and built from south of Pryor to the top of the Gap. After leaving the Gap, the road was built down Sage Creek in Montana to present Frannie, Wyoming, then south and west to Cody, Wyoming. Construction of the grade on the northern end of the line began in May 1900.    The 128-mile route had been constructed over a very steep grade, and trains could only average about 20 miles per hour over the line. A 300 yard long tunnel was cut at Pryor Gap in order to complete the line. The roadbed had several sharp curves, and as a result it took over 7-1/2 hours to travel across the route. The line was abandoned on April 11, 1911, without notice.  

In 1899, the Big Horn Southern (a CB&Q line) built a line, connecting Toluca with Cody, Wyoming.  The line started in Toluca, Montana (along the old Hardin Road), then proceeded west to Coburn, then south towards the Pryors and the Big Horn Basin, making stops at Morin, Keiser, Pryor, Chicopee, Oswald, Crockett, Bowler, Scribner, Frannie, Mantua, Garland, Powell, Ralston, McCormick, Corbett, and Cody. Northeast of Pryor Gap, considerable difficulty was experienced in locating a suitable grade. Finally, a fairly steep grade of sixty-six feet per mile was surveyed and built from south of Pryor to the top of the Gap. After leaving the Gap, the road was built down Sage Creek in Montana to present Frannie, Wyoming, then south and west to Cody, Wyoming. Construction of the grade on the northern end of the line began in May 1900.    The 128-mile route had been constructed over a very steep grade, and trains could only average about 20 miles per hour over the line. A 300 yard long tunnel was cut at Pryor Gap in order to complete the line. The roadbed had several sharp curves, and as a result it took over 7-1/2 hours to travel across the route. The line was abandoned on April 11, 1911, without notice.  

1. https://pryormountains.org/-homestead-era/railroad

2. https://groups.io/g/CBQ/attachment/67157/0/09_big_horn_basin_map_1902_-_cody_crow_lands_yellowstone.jpg

3. https://www.mtgenweb.com/yellowstone/history/burlington.htm

4. "A General Historical Survey Of The Pryor Mountains" https://archive.org/stream/generalhistorica1974harv/generalhistorica1974harv_djvu.txt (PP 33-36;)+++
5. http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mtyellow/dave-6.htm

From Explore Rail History Database

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