Elizabeth and I awoke in Williams and following our morning preparations, we checked out of the Ramada Inn and Elizabeth drove us to Pine Country Restaurant where I enjoyed Old Time French Toast and bacon and Elizabeth also had Old Time French Toast but with strawberries and orange juice. We parked across the street from the Pine Country Restaurant and started our exploration.
Grand Canyon Railway historySince 1901 the Grand Canyon Railway has enchanted millions of people from all over the world. From its yesteryears of transporting ore to our present-day journeys to the canyon with the help of authentic characters who bring the Old West to life, the story of our railway is almost as dramatic as the spectacular surroundings.
The train-whose fate seemed sealed when it was shut down back in 1968 due to the popularity of automobiles-is now responsible for keeping approximately 50,000 cars outside of a national treasure. By traveling aboard Grand Canyon Railway you are not only part of history in the making, you are also doing your part to help preserve the pristine, incredible beauty of Grand Canyon National Park.
Back in the late 1800s, the Grand Canyon was a far-off distant land. Only the most adventurous of explorers could rough the elements to see it at its remote location in northern Arizona, which was still a territory at the time. But Americans were on the move and going west. American ingenuity was hard at work in the form of the Rrailways, being built and tying the nation together.
Initially, the main line west was built from Chicago to Los Angeles and it passed through Williams, Arizona. The Rrailway was originally built to transport ore in the Wild West from the Anita mines, 45 miles north of Williams, in the late 1800s. Buckey O'Neill, sheriff of Yavapi County, mayor of Prescott, prospector, promoter and later one of Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders, realized money could be made in the mines. He traveled east to gain the support and investment. O'Neill gained the support of Thomas Lombard from the investment firm of Lombard, Goode and Company in New York. Together they entered conversations with the Santa Fe Pacific Rrailway.
To help gain the interest of the Santa Fe, O'Neill sent ore samples of gold saying he had mined the samples from the Grand Canyon. In the same letter, however, O'Neill also recognized the potential for tourism so he spoke to the natural beauty of the region and the canyon. O’Neill continued to flirt with the Santa Fe through the years seeking their investment. He also tried to get local investors, which he did, and in 1897 the Santa Fe and Grand Canyon Rrailway Company was incorporated. Development of the tracks north from Williams began. O'Neill would not see its completion. He left to fight in the Spanish American War behind Colonel Theodore Roosevelt where he died in 1898.
The Railway changed management and consolidated numerous times in the early year. Finally, the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway took over and completed the track to Grand Canyon in 1901. The company could make a return on its investment through tourism because the lure of ore and mining proved to be unsustainable. The $3.95 train ride would replace the $15.00 eight-hour stagecoach ride from Flagstaff, allowing visitors to gaze upon what Teddy Roosevelt said, "Every American should see". The 65 miles of track the iron horse traveled became the lifeline to Grand Canyon.
Grand Canyon Railway made its first journey to the Grand Canyon on September 17, 1901. And since that time, notable passengers to ride the Grand Canyon Railway include Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, William Howard Taft, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Clark Gable, Jimmy Durante, Doris Day, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.
Over the years, the Santa Fe also built many of the structures that now grace the South Rim. After all, if they were going to start bringing people in large numbers, they had to have a way to accommodate and feed them. When the train first arrived in 1901, tent camps were found along the rim. The Santa Fe approached the development with engineering skills and technology of the times that made a wonderful contribution still evident today. In 1904, the Rrailway hired the Fred Harvey Company to manage the hotels and restaurants at the Grand Canyon for the Santa Fe, and in 1905, Santa Fe built its flagship hotel, the El Tovar, which became the finest lodging at the rim and arguably in the Southwest at the time.
The Railway, in a most progressive move for the times, hired Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter, a woman, to design many of the buildings that have become part of the signature of Grand Canyon National Park. Her distinctive touch stamped an indelible imprint the building at the Grand Canyon with her version of a natural style of Pueblo Indian architecture. Colter is responsible for such landmarks as the Hopi House, Lookout Studio, Bright Angel Lodge, Desert View Watchtower and Hermit's Rest.
All supplies used in the construction of Grand Canyon Village came to Northern Arizona aboard the train. The train also brought all water to the Grand Canyon until 1926. Supplies were not the only things carried in trains. Ranching and lumber were the primary industries of the early 1900s. Ranchers and lumberjacks contracted with the Grand Canyon Railway to transport their stock. The Railway shared the countryside with its neighbors forming a unique bond. Cowboys, lumberjacks and shepherds alike felt a little better and closer to civilization just being able to hear the train or see its lights off in the distance.
Grand Canyon Railway stopped service to Grand Canyon in 1968 after ridership declined due to the rise in popularity of automobile travel. The Interstate highway system had been completed and people fell in love with "the road trip". The train had been a source of regional pride, a symbol of man's spirit of conquest and a sense of harmony with nature. Interstate highways were built paralleling the Rrailway, and silently replaced virgin landscapes privileged only to the train with billboards and gas stations.
The Railway was reopened for passenger service on September 17, 1989, by entrepreneurs Max and Thelma Biegert - 88 years to the day of the first passenger train to the Grand Canyon. "Bringing the Grand Canyon line back to life really came down to the eleventh hour", explained then Williams Marshal John Moore. "As Grand Canyon Railway was working on getting the final paper-work complete, a corporation which made a failed attempt to restore the Grand Canyon line, had begun tearing it up for salvage materials. If it hadn't been for Grand Canyon Railway, train service to the Grand Canyon would have been permanently lost".
In 1989, Grand Canyon Railway put a stop to the salvage work and began a detailed restoration process. The decaying tracks were rebuilt, the historic depots at both ends of the line were restored, and after 21 years, passenger service once again returned to Grand Canyon National Park.
"Max Biegert and his wife Thelma brought an important piece of Arizona history back to life. We have them to thank for the opportunity to travel just as those first passengers did in 1901 to the canyon so appropriately named Grand", said Railway Historian Al Richmond.
Today, Grand Canyon Railway provides a historic and fun journey to the canyon with the help of authentic western characters who bring the Old West to life. Moreover, the train whose fate seemed sealed when it was shut down due to the popularity of automobiles, is now responsible for keeping approximately 50,000 cars outside of the national treasure.
Explains Jeff D'Arpa, Grand Canyon Railway General Manager, "By traveling aboard Grand Canyon Railway you are not only experiencing an entertaining and historic journey, but you are also doing your part to help preserve the pristine beauty of the Grand Canyon"
Our TripWe walked down the platform and started taking pictures.
Ray and Gila Valley caboose 017, ex. Lowell S. "Jake" Jacobson as Jake 017, exx. Copper Basin Railway O17, ex Kennecott Copper Corparation KCC 017, nee Ray and Gila Valley 017. It was built by the Ray Consolidated Copper Company in 1913 and is owned by the Arizona State Railway Museum Foundation.
Information board about this caboose.
Santa Fe Williams station built in 1930.
Grand Canyon Railway 2-8-0 29 built by American Locomotive Company in 1906 as Lake Superior & Ishpeming Railway 14. We walked west to the other engine on display here which was new to us.
Shay 5 display board.
Saginaw-Manistee Lumber three truck Shay 5, ex. display at Mehmke Steam Museum Fife, Montana in 1962, exx. Jack Hoover 196, nee Anaconda Copper Mining 5 in Greenhough, Montana. It was built by Lima Locomotive Works in 1923 and since 2005, has been owned by the Arizona State Railway Museum. Shay 5 was never operated in Arizona but is representative of the type of locomotive used by various logging and short line railroads in Northern Arizona. The Saginaw and Manistee Lumber Company was founded circa 1870 in Michigan. In 1893 the company opened a lumber mill in Williams, Arizona Territory. The company virtually built the town of Williams and supplied the town with both power and water for nearly the entire first half of the twentieth century. The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad (earlier known as the Atlantic and Pacific) also depended on the company to provide their trains with water.
Santa Fe caboose 999060 built by American Car and Foundry in 1930. We walked back to the station, picked up our tickets and bought a couple of souvenirs.
Grand Canyon Railway 2-8-2 4960 built by Baldwin in 1923, nee Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railway 4960. In 1966 it was donated to Baraboo Circus Museum in Baraboo, Wisconsin then in 1970 donated to Mid-Continent Railway Historical Society in North Freedom, Wisconsin. In 1980, it was leased to Bristol and Northwestern Railway Company 4960 in Bristol, Virginia then in 1985 it was moved to New Haven, Indiana and sold to the Grand Canyon Railway.
Our train getting ready to take us to the Grand Canyon.
Grand Canyon 2-8-2 4960 is looking good on this morning. We waited to board our Pullman car with open windows and car host Connie soon opened the vestibule.
The interior of the Pullman Car.
Grand Canyon Railway dome coach "Desert View", ex. Denver Railway Car Company, exx. Alaska Railroad, exxx. Alaska Railroad 7000, nee Denver and Rio Grande Western 1106 built by the Budd Manufacturing Company in 1948.
Grand Canyon Railway F40PH-2 4124, nee New Jersey Tranist 4124, built by Electro-Motive Division in 1981.
Grand Canyon Railway 237, nee Amtrak 237, built by Electro-Motive Division in 1977.
Our train took the big curve out of Williams to head north to the Grand Canyon. With an open window, this was going to be fun.
Passenger cars of the Arizona State Railroad Museum.
Grand Canyon Railway FPB-4 6871, ex. General Scrap 6871 Winnipeg, exx. Via Rail 6871, nee Canadian National 6871. It was built by Montreal Locomotive Works in 1923.
Black Mesa and Lake Powell E60 6001 built by General Electric in 1972.
Southern Pacific NW-2 2406 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1941.
Santa Fe S4 1528 built by American Locomotive Company in 1952.
Grand Canyon Railway shops in Williams.
The trip starts out in the Ponderosa pine forest.
A few of the cinder cones can be seen from the train.
The train took a pair of curves along our route.
Another of the cinder cones.
Sitgreaves Peak.
Our train curved around as we descended from Williams.
Sitgreaves Peak.
Kendrick Peak.
San Francisco Peaks along with Sitgreaves Peak.
Kendrick Peak.
The train took this long curve to the right as we started out of the forest.
Looking southeast at San Francisco Peaks.
Red Butte.
Our train took another right hand curve as we rolled along the grasslands.
Looking southeast at San Francisco Peaks.
The view towards Red Butte.
This train took the curve at Milepost 27.
Another view of Red Butte.
Another curve to the right.
Grand Canyon Railway 4960 really steamed it up as it climbed to the top of this hill.
It had been many years since either of us rode this tourist train and I had forgotten the amount of curves on this line.
Our train took another curve towards Coconino Canyon and we entered the Pinon-Juniper Woodlands.
The train entered the beautiful Coconino Canyon after which we went into the Ponderosa Pine Forest.
The upper reaches of Coconino Canyon.
The train took another right hand turn.
Milepost 58 was passed.
Our train took another one of the curves on this line.
10 MPH Yard Limit sign we went by. It was announced that we would wye the train before reaching the Grand Canyon station and because of this, both of us would be getting new mileage.
The whole train in these two views.
We went into the wye.
The rear of the train on the wye.
Coming off the wye with the train being turned for the trip back to Williams.
The train is reversing into the Grand Canyon station and they would cut off the last two cars and then pull forward to clar a path into the station. Elizabeth and I headed for the engine when we detrained.
Grand Canyon Railway 4960 at the Grand Canyon.
Grand Canyon Railway F40FH 4128, nee New Jersey Transit 4128, built by Electro-Motive Division in 1981.
Grand Canyon Railway power car 460, ex. VIA steam generator unit 15460, nee Canadian National 15460 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1959.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 311, ex. Caltrain 314, exx. Virginia Rail Express, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 417, exxxx. MBTA 6151, nee Boston and Maine RDC3 6306; Morrison Knudsen Boise rebuild coach, built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1958.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 404, ex. Caltrain 404, exx. Virginia Rail Express, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority, nee Boston and Maine, Morrison Knudsen Boise rebuilt from RDC1 6115 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1955.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 306, ex. Caltrain 306, exx. Virginia Rail Express 413, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 6141, nee Boston and Maine, Morrison Knudsen Boise coach rebuilt from RDC1 6144 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1955.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 801, ex. Caltrain 401, exx. Virginia Rail Express, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 401, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 6102, nee Boston and Maine Morrison Knudsen, Boise Budd coach rebuilt from Budd RDC1 6102 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1953.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 800, ex. Virginia Rail Express 101, exx. Virginia Rail Express 801, exxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 400, exxxx. Massachusettes Bay Transit Authority 6201, nee Boston and Maine, Morrison Knudsen Boise coach rebuilt from RDC2 coach 6201 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1955.
Grand Canyon Railway Harriman-Style "Pullman" 2152, nee Southern Pacific 2152, built by Pullman Palace Car Company in 1923
Grand Canyon Railway Cafe Car 2096, nee Pennslyvania Railroad 29-seat parlor car with 5-seat drawing rooms 7132 "Henry Knox" built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1951.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 7608 "Arizona", ex. Amtrak 7608, exx. 7418, exxx. Penn Central 1588, nee Pennslyvania Railroad coach-smoker 1588 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1951.
Grand Canyon Railway coach 4012 "Yavapai", ex. Amtrak, exx. Amtrak 4431, nee Southern Pacific 44-seat leg-rest coach 2368 "Golden Ore" built in 1950 by the Budd Manufacturing Company in 1950.
Grand Canyon Railway dome-coach 2097 "Kokopelli", nee Great Northern 1326, built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1955.
Grand Canyon Railway dome-coach 2097 "Coconino", ex. Amtrak, nee Northern Pacific Railway 554. It was built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1954.
Grand Canyon Railway dome-coach 7021 "Desert View", ex. Denver Railcar, exx. Alaska Railroad 7000, nee Denver Rio Grande and Western 7021 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1948.
Grand Canyon Railway full length dome car 8743 "Mary Colter", ex. Denver Railcar, exx. Alaska Railroad, exxx. Alaska Railroad 7003, exxxx. Amtrak 9456, nee Chicago Burlington and Quincy 1395 "River View" built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1955.
Grand Canyon Railway Parlor Car 255 "Chief", ex. Texas Southern Dinner Train, exx. Amtrak 3444, exx. Seaboard Coast Line 5834, nee Atlantic Coast Line 255 built by Budd Manufacturing Company in 1947. After 1991, it served as a dinner car for charter in Mexico until 1993 when it was seized by the Mexican government. After a protracted legal battle the car was returned in 1994 to the US-Mexico border where it was picked up by the Union Pacific for delivery to San Antonio, but the car was lost en route and found later that year in New Orleans. The car was subsequently damaged in a rear end collision on its return to San Antonio and the owner put it into storage before selling it in 1999. The next owner added the observation platform at a cost of $95,000 to cover up the damage caused in the collision, but decided to sell the car prior to completing the restoration. GCR acquired the car in 2002 and put it into service in October of that year as the Chief.
The Williams Flyer Drumhead.
Grand Canyon Railway FP4 6776, ex. Portola Railroad Museum 6776, exx. Via Rail 6776, nee Canadian National 6776 built by Montreal Locomotive Works in 1959.
Santa Fe Grand Canyon station built in 1910. We started walking up the steps towards the rim.
Hopi House.
Santa Fe El Tovar Hotel built in 1910.
The Grand Canyon behind the Hopi House.
Two views of my loving wife Elizabeth.
One view of your author. We walked west along the rim of the Grand Canyon.
More views of the canyon.
Further on the trail. We stopped for a lemonade for the two of us.
The Lookout Studio which we went inside and out to the viewpoint.
The views from the lower level. We went inside and up the steps.
The view from the upper level.
The Santa Fe El Tovar Hotel from further down the rim. We continued west along the rim.
This was as far we we went. We walked back and stopped for ice cream at the Bright Angel Lodge's Soda Fountain and Luncheonette. After that we returned to the El Tovar Hotel with me resting and Elizabeth browsing the two gift shops. We then returned to the train station because my knee was hurting, and Elizabeth went off and did some shopping. She returned and we walked to the front of the train.
Elizabeth and Grand Canyon Railway 4960.
Grand Canyon Railway 4960 on the point of our train back to Williams. We waited on the curb until the conductor said they would load in five minutes. We got into line and boarded coach 306 for our trip back. I gave Elizabeth the window seat as I would be doing Word Search puzzles for part of the journey which enabled her to see the steam engine on curves which she really enjoyed.
The clouds were beautiful on the trip back.
Our car attendant Cameron works the Polar Express trains and gave everyone a smiley face when he punched our tickets after the train robbery.
Bill Williams Mountain as we were returning to Williams.
Grand Canyon Railway F40PHR 295 built by Electro-Motive Division in 1979. We both enjoyed our trip on the Grand Canyon Railway as it had been since 2002 that Elizabeth rode this and I did it in 2001 and 2002. We walked across the street to the Pine Country Restaurant where I had roast beef and Elizabeth had the salmon. She then drove us to Prescott Valley where we checked into The Green Tree Inn for the night.
10/2/2022 We arose and folowing our Internet duties, walked across the street to Denny's where I had French Toast with bacon and Elizabeth had strawberry and banana French Toast along with orange juice. Elizabeth checked us out while I loaded the car before I drove us to the Santa Fe station in Prescott.
Santa Fe Prescott station built in 1907.
Information board about this station. We then drove Arizona Highway 89 to Congress, to Arizona Highway 71 to US Highway 60, to Interstate 10 which we took to the Quartsize Loves petrol station where we filled the car. I drove into California through Blythe west to the rest area at Wiley's Well where we switched drivers and Elizabeth would drive us home.
It was raining and the water was being evaporated upwards.
Thunderheads over San Jacinto peak.
A pair of thunderheads.
Thunderheads over the eastern edge of San Gorgonio mountain range. We took Interstate 10 to CA Highway 60 to Interstate 215 to CA Highway 91 to CA Highway 55, off at Chapman Avenue and a left on Tustin Avenue to our apartment, where we finished the trip with 4,273 miles driven over the two-and-a-half weeks. It was good to be home after a great trip.
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