James J. Hill’s Great Northern Railway from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, to Seattle, Washington, was completed on January 6, 1898, although...
Working on the Railroad
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Railroad
The Hashknife
The arrival of the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad in 1881 opened up the virgin grasslands of northern Arizona to large scale cattle ranching. The...
Blood Money, Time Zones and Old West Jails
Did the Ford Brothers ever get the reward money on Jesse James? Joe Manriquez (Whittier, California) Missouri Governor Thomas T. Crittenden raised...
Del Potter’s Railroad
Del Potter ran a little railroad he proudly named the Clifton and Northern. The line ran from the little town of Clifton to a mine north of town but...
Punch Your Ticket!
Escape to America’s favorite heritage railway towns from coast to coast for adventure and fun for all ages. Amtrak serves 500 American...
The Iron Horse and Kit Carson
While innumerable stories about trains, train robberies and the famed trailblazer appeared in True West during its 70-year history, they were rarely...
All Aboard!
All Aboard! South Dakota photographer John C.H. Grabill’s 1891 image of a Burlington and Missouri River Railroad passenger train on Horseshoe Curve...
Bards, Bison and Bowlers
What kind of reception did traveling entertainment groups receive in the West? Gloria Mata Phoenix, Arizona They were very popular in the...
Big, Bigger, Biggest
It doesn’t get much sweeter than this in rural Nevada. They probably pulled $10 million in copper out of the mines around McGill, Nevada, in its...
Tamer of Raton Pass
“Uncle Dick” Wootton helped build a nation with his Santa Fe Trail toll road. Well past midnight, everyone in the wagon train was snoring. First...
Fred Harvey and his Harvey Houses
Before the days of railroad dining cars, passengers were forced to eat in the local hash houses wherever the train happened to stop. The food was...
Ride That Train!
Towering pines whirl past an open window ushering in pine-scented breezes. The click-clack of train wheels underneath relaxes riders. Puffs of...