Limon Colorado is located about an hour's drive, east of both Denver, and Colorado Springs. Several railroads have passed through town, on routes from the Midwest, to the Rockies.
Prior to about 1982, Limon was an important junction for the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific (Rock Island) and the Union Pacific. Before Amtrak, several passenger trains used to stop at Limon. The Rock Island's Rocky Mountain Rocket streamliner used to divide here, with one section heading to Denver, over Union Pacific trackage rights, and the other section continuing on the Rock Island's line to Colorado Springs. The Rocky Mountain Rocket's claim to fame was it was the only streamliner from Chicago to Colorado Springs, that did not involve a change of train, or equipment in Denver. The Union Pacific also had a streamliner, the City of St. Louis, that passed through town. It connected with other UP trains to western points, at Denver Union Station. The UP line was originally constructed as the Kansas Pacific Railroad. Amtrak did not utilize either route, when it was created in 1971. For a short time in the early 1980's a tourist operation used the former Rock Island tracks towards Colorado Springs on a regular basis.
In 2003, the former Rock Island route is owned and operated into Nebraska by the Kyle Railways. The UP has upgraded its line through Limon due to increased traffic. The Rock Island's former line to Colorado Springs has been abandoned, and removed.
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1. View of the Limon Station. Just behind the fence is the track connecting the former Rock Island, to the UP line, headed to Denver.
2. View of the east side of the Limon station buiding.
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3. View looking east, along the Rock Island/Kyle Railway line, from the Limon station parking lot. The passenger cars parked here are an old heavyweight, and two former Milwaukee Road cars.
4. View from the Kyle/Rock Island connecting track to the UP. This view is looking east.
5. Another view looking east, from a station platorm.
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6. Among the pieces of equipment parked around the Limon station area, was this Milwaukee Road combine. Judging by the looks of this car, it was build in the Milwaukee Road's Milwaukee Shops. It is painted in the Milwaukee Road's paint scheme used prior to the Milwaukee's arrangement to handle the Union Pacific's passenger trains between Chicago and Omaha.
7. Looking west along the former Rock Island line to Colorado Springs.
8. View of some Kyle Railroad
locomotives, sitting east of Limon, on the former Rock Island
mainline.
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1. View, about 10 miles east of Limon. The trees up ahead mean we're coming to a town.
2. View in the other direction. Not to many trees. Much of eastern Colorado, as well as many of the plain states look like this.
3. The building in the center of the picture, in front of the trees, is a former roundhouse, along the Kansas Pacific. Roundhouses were built to maintain steam locomotives.
Updated 11/6/2003
(c) Copyright, J. Carl Shaw, 2003. All rights reserved. Photos and accounts may be used by crediting the author/photgrapher.