Blickensderfer’s Backwards Bridge and the Georgetown Loop
The Georgetown Loop Railroad faced a wild problem in 1879: how to link two towns just two miles apart but with a 640-foot cliff between them.
Union Pacific’s Jacob Blickensderfer came up with a bold fix—a twisting 4.5-mile route with curves that looked like a corkscrew.
For three years, 200 men worked by hand, blasting rock and building walls in harsh mountain weather. Then came the real drama.
After building the massive Devil’s Gate Bridge, workers found it had been installed completely backwards. In freezing winter, they tore it apart and rebuilt it right.
Today, this $254,700 “railroad to nowhere” stands as one of America’s greatest engineering marvels you can still ride through the Colorado Rockies.
Silver Rush Fever Sparked a Railroad Challenge
When big silver strikes hit Leadville in 1879, Georgetown became Colorado’s “Silver Queen.” Jay Gould, who ran Union Pacific Railroad, wanted his Colorado Central line to reach Leadville first.
Georgetown looked perfect as the starting point for a railroad to Leadville, about 45 miles west. The problem?
Clear Creek Canyon stood in the way with slopes steeper than 6 percent, too steep for trains to climb. Jacob Blickensderfer, the top engineer at Union Pacific, got the tough job of finding a way through the mountains.
Engineers Fought Nature and Bad Luck During Planning
Jacob Blickensderfer and his son Thomas started survey work in 1879. Things went wrong right away.
Their survey crew made so many mistakes that their first work was almost useless. Workers kept getting hurt on the rough land, and keeping people on the job became a daily struggle.
Harsh Colorado winters cut their planning time short.
Union Pacific still liked the progress enough to create the Georgetown, Breckenridge and Leadville Railway in February 1881.
A Corkscrew Track Solved the Impossible Slope Problem
Blickensderfer came up with a clever plan to cut the steep 6 percent slope to a more manageable 3.5 percent.
He designed a 4.47-mile twisting route connecting Georgetown and Silver Plume, even though the towns sat just 2 miles apart with 638 feet of height difference.
The route had three sharp turns, four bridges over Clear Creek, and a big 30-degree curved turn. The track would cross over itself at Devil’s Gate, the narrowest spot in the valley.
Two Hundred Men Built a Railroad by Hand in Winter
Construction of the High Line started in January 1882 with 200 workers using only hand tools. These men blasted apart huge rocks blocking the route without modern machines.
They built stone walls along the path using just manual tools and explosives. Work moved forward on and off through rough winter weather in the Colorado Rockies.
Locals in Georgetown and Silver Plume watched every step of the big project.
Pennsylvania Iron Workers Created a Bridge for the Mountains
Union Pacific hired the Phoenixville Bridge Company from Pennsylvania to build the big Devil’s Gate High Bridge. The bridge needed an 18-degree curve rising on a 2 percent slope, requiring very exact measurements.
Workers shipped iron bridge parts to Denver on standard tracks, then moved them via narrow tracks to the building site.
The design called for a 300-foot span across Clear Creek gorge, rising 95 feet above the valley floor.
Fall Construction Raced Against Mountain Weather
Workers finished the stone piers for the bridge on October 4, 1883, the same day the first load of iron arrived in Georgetown. Bridge building started in late September 1883 and took two full months of non-stop work.
The crew fought tough autumn weather in the Colorado mountains.
Men balanced on narrow beams high above Clear Creek canyon, fitting iron pieces together bit by bit. By November 29, 1883, the bridge looked ready for trains.
Someone Put the Whole Bridge Together Backwards
Union Pacific chief engineer Robert B. Stanton got a huge shock in November 1883.
The entire bridge had been put up backwards. North and south bridge columns sat in the wrong places.
Stanton refused to accept the flipped bridge, pointing out bad riveting and wrong column placement.
Several weeks of heated talks followed between Union Pacific and Phoenixville Bridge Company over who would pay for the costly mistake. The bridge company finally agreed to fix their backwards installation.
Workers Rebuilt the Bridge in Freezing Temperatures
Crews took apart the entire bridge and started over during the dead of winter, a tough six-week job. Workers faced harsh Colorado mountain weather while taking down and rebuilding the bridge.
Work continued through December 1883 and January 1884 despite snow and freezing cold that made metal work very hard. The bridge finally reached completion on January 24, 1884.
Workers then set ties and rails in place on the fixed bridge.
The First Train Crossed a Bridge Built Twice
The first test train crossed Devil’s Gate Bridge on February 28, 1884, showing the structure could handle the weight and stress. Engineers checked the bridge carefully for safety before allowing regular train trips.
They set a slow speed limit of just 4 mph on the high bridge because of its sharp curve and height. Track building continued five miles past Silver Plume to Bakerville before stopping for good.
The total project cost reached $254,700, a huge sum for railroad building in that time.
Passengers Finally Rode the Loop in Spring 1884
The first train carrying actual passengers completed the twisting path to Silver Plume in March 1884.
The Georgetown Loop officially opened as an engineering marvel, considered one of the most daring narrow-gauge railroads in America. The route included 3.5 complete circles when all curves and loops were calculated together.
The railroad triumph over seemingly impossible Rocky Mountain terrain captured the American imagination. Curious travelers began arriving from across the nation to see the engineering wonder.
A Useless Railroad Became America’s First Train Tourism Spot
Union Pacific soon found an easier route to Leadville through South Park, making the Georgetown Loop obsolete for its original purpose.
The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad had already reached Leadville from the south, eliminating any competitive advantage.
Plans to continue the Georgetown line over Continental Divide at Loveland Pass got abandoned permanently. The Georgetown Loop transformed from a freight railroad into Colorado’s first major tourist attraction.
Seven daily trains from Denver brought sightseers who walked across the high bridge and marveled at the mountain engineering achievement.
Visiting Georgetown-Silver Plume Historic District, Colorado
You can ride the historic Georgetown Loop Railroad between Silver Plume Depot at 825 Railroad Ave and Devil’s Gate Station at 646 Loop Drive Georgetown.
The narrow-gauge railroad runs steam or diesel trains multiple times daily April through September. Add the Lebanon Silver Mine tour that goes 500-1,000 feet underground with gold panning included.
Bring a jacket since mines stay at 44°F year-round. Call 1-888-456-6777 for reservations.
This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.
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