The Oddest Railway in
the World
by H. A. Coleman
Leslie's WeeklyJune 4, 1903
MANY UNIQUE and interesting things can be found in the high
mountains that surround the Yellowstone National Park, but it
is doubtful if anything more odd or interesting can be found than
the little railroad that connects the towns of Horr and Aldrich,
Montana. While this road was built by the Montana Coal and Iron
Company as an adjunct to its business it has exceeded the original
intentions of its projectors, and is now a regular passenger and
freight road, and has been facetiously named the Rocky Mountain
Limited. The road is narrow-gauge, and the motive power is both
cable and electricity. The cable that operates the first section
of the road is 4,000 feet in length, and in some places it pulls
the funny little car up a forty-three per-cent. grade, across
trestles that it shakes one's nerves to look at, and into a little
power-house, the Dew Drop Inn, that looks like a red speck on
the top of the mountain. From the inn to Aldrich, the end of the
line, the road changes into an electric trolley, and the workmen
and tourists who patronize it enjoy riding upon the funniest little
trolley-car ever built.
Horr is not a large town. In fact,
it is nothing more than a mining camp and the headquarters of
the coal company that built the road, but the fame of the mountain-climber
is spreading, and many of the tourists who visit the park stop
over a train to indulge in a ride on the Rocky Mountain Limited.
The, road begins at the foot of the camp, and for the first few
hundred feet it runs on level ground. Then the ascent begins,
and for the next fifteen minutes the passengers divide their time
between holding on to the ropes on the bottom of the car and wondering
why they ever risked their lives in such a mad adventure. The
single car that composes the first section of this train has none
of the appliances to make traveling safe and easy that are possessed
by the cars that climb Lookout Mountain. There are no raised sections
in the platform on which to brace your feet, or benches on which
you can sit and hold on tight when the journey into the clouds
begins. This "coach" is simply a flat car fifteen feet
long, with no seats. It, however, has several ropes running along
the platform the length of the car, and those passengers who do
not care to slide off into space are supposed to cling to these.
No one cares to contemplate what would happen should one of these
ropes break while the car is making its forty-three per cent.
climb.
The cable which draws the car is operated by electricity, and
the man in charge keeps in constant communication with the man
in the power-house by means of an electric button, the power being
transmitted through the cable. The "limited" has no
published schedule, but runs at the sweet will of those who wish
to ride upon it. Should the car happen to be at the top of the
hill when a passenger appears at the foot the engineer in the
power-house that generates the electricity blows his whistle three
times and the car comes down. This whistle has the most mournful
screech, and its doleful sound seems to be a foretaste of the
sensations that are to come. And these sensations begin at once.
A short distance from the starting point the road runs under the
flume through which the waste coal is sent from the washer down
to the coke ovens. This flume is but a few feet above the ground,
and when the car passes under it there is not much space to spare.
Should the car happen to be loaded, as it frequently is, and the
passengers compelled to sit on top of the freight, the prospect
as the car approaches the flume is not a happy one. Looking at
it from a short space away it does not seem possible to go under
it, and it takes a cool head to retain one's seat. The records
for the past summer show that more than one lady's hat has been
wrecked as the car went under the flume, but it remained for a
member of President Roosevelt's party to loose his nerve and jump
off. While Mr. Roosevelt was exploring the Yellowstone Park the
members of his party, who lived on the train at Cinnabar, three
miles from the entrance to the park, spent their time in exploring
the surrounding country, and one of the places visited was Horr.
A trip to the top of the mountain was suggested, and the party
piled aboard the car. It so happened that on that particular day
a large consignment of beer in kegs was being shipped to Aldrich,
or "Happy Flats," as it is more familiarly called. So
perforce the passengers had to ride on top of the kegs. As the
car approached the flume the "member who lost his nerve"
cried to the conductor to halt. No attention was paid to him,
and just as the car reached the flume some one cried "Low
bridge!" This was too much for the agitated passenger, and
with a yell that echoed through the mountains for some time after,
he leaped. Fortunately he was not hurt, but his life has been
made miserable since by the constant guying of his associates.
As the car approaches the top of the mountain the scene is
one never to be forgotten. Back in the distance is Sheep Mountain,
rising to a height of 1,800 feet, with the Yellowstone River dashing
along at its base. The snowcapped mountain and the grass green
valley form a beautiful contrast, and the dangers of the ride
are forgotten. One of the photographs accompanying this article
was taken at the top of the mountain, and is the first picture
ever made of the scene. The dog, Prince, whose picture is shown
in two of the cuts, is as well known to the people who patronize
the road as the car itself. He frequently accompanies the car
on its journey, and while he is compelled to fall behind when
the steep grades are reached, he never fails to show up at the
top of the mountain. The exciting part of the ride is over when
the car reaches the power-house at the top. Here the passengers
are transferred to the trolley for a short ride along the ridge
of the mountain and into "Happy Flats." As stated before,
this trolley-car is in a class by itself. Most any other name
would fit it as well, except that it really has a trolley-pole
and gets its motive power from a trolley. This car, like the cable-car,
is simply a flat platform on wheels. It has no sides nor top,
and the machinery necessary to operate it is placed in full view
of the passengers, and also is exposed to the varying elements
of the weather. But this latter fact apparently has not damaged
it any.
"Trolley George," who operates the car, also runs
the cable that pulls the other car up the mountain. As may be
imagined he has a great deal of time on his hands, and has devised
many methods of amusing himself. Perhaps the most peculiar is
what he calls making a book with himself. He owns a powerful pair
of binoculars, and with these watches the car as it ascends or
descends the mountain. As the car approaches the flume he bets
with himself whether the passengers will duck or not. Up to date
the "duck" book is way ahead. George also claims that
he can see the expression on the faces of the passengers as they
go under the flume, but the narrator of this narrative refuses
to vouch for this. The feat of which George is the proudest is
the drawing of a five-thousand-pound boiler to the top of the
mountain on his car. He claims that a car capable of carrying
this load should not be considered dangerous for passengers.
One of the great events in Aldrich is the arrival of the mail.
When the queer little trolley-car comes rolling in with the mail-pouch,
the whole population of the camp is there to meet it. No matter
how far away from civilization people maybe, the arrival of the
mail is an event in their lives. There is one interesting incident
in the trolley ride from Dew Drop Inn to Aldrich. Near the end
of the line the road passes through a short tunnel hewn out of
solid rock. The roof is composed of logs and earth, and cold water
constantly seeps through and on to the passengers. No matter how
smartly attired these passengers may be, they have to take this
icy bath.
This unique little road has been
in operation now for a year. It was built by the employees of
the Montana Coal and Iron Company, under the direction of Superintendent
Merry, and although part of it traverses a dangerous section of
the mountain, no accident has yet occurred to blot its record,
and it undoubtedly stands to-day as one of the most interesting
bits of railroading in this country.
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