This article is an attempt to explain a part of narrow gauge railroading that has been more or less ignored. The communication facilities and the people who used them were as important to the operation of the railroad as the engineer, fireman, and conductor. It is important that a record of this aspect of the railroad be preserved, since it was vital to the operation of the railroad. Without reliable communications, a safe and efficient railroad could not function.
With these thoughts in mind, I decided to document the communication methods and equipment used on the D&RGW Fourth Division. I had a great deal of help from two former D&RGW employees. John B. Norwood, who was trainmaster of the Fourth Division during the last heavy movement of traffic (the bit of history known as "The Pipe Movement", the 1950-1952 movement to the Farmington New Mexico oil and gas discoveries). His first job with the D&RGW was as a telegrapher, and during a long career he made his way to Trainmaster and following other promotions attained assignment to Assistant Vice President of Operations. He has an extensive knowledge of railroad operations and vital communications facilities and procedures. L.E. Trump began his career as a fireman on the Alamosa-Durango line in the early 60s. After graduating with a degree in electrical engineering, he was employed by the D&RGW as a communications engineer. Thus he is familiar with the communications facilities as they existed in the last years prior to abandonment of the Narrow Gauge. Both of these gentleman were kind enough to answer my many questions about how things were done on the Narrow Gauge based upon their own hands-on experience.
The Narrow Gauge was actually a minor operation in the minds of DRGW management- even to the point of considering it a nuisance. So, why does such an insignificant operation remain so interesting to railfans and historians today ? Conditions in the remote Narrow Gauge country caused this railroad to remain relatively unchanged over the decades. Despite a few "modernizations", the D&RGW Narrow Gauge remained relatively unchanged from the day it was built until its final demise in 1969. The advent of large superheated motive power was the only technological improvement applied to the Narrow Gauge in its life span ! "Centralized Traffic Control" or its predecessor the block system was never implemented on the Narrow Gauge. Wooden freight cars were still in service long after they had become displays in standard gauge railroading museums.
The fact that tens of thousands of passengers ride the former D&RGW equipment via the C&TSRR and D&SNGRR "living museums" certainly increases the exposure of narrow gauge mountain railroads to railfans and the average tourist.
The Narrow Gauge preserved steam railroading as it was in the late nineteenth century. Also preserved were methods of communication and control of the movement of trains which were developed and refined in that period. Still in place and used were the instruments and line wires for transmitting information by Morse telegraph. At the time of abandonment the few stations that remained open were staffed by men who preferred and used Morse code telegraphy to the 'phones that were installed during the final years of operation. Little documentation exists on this important function of narrow gauge railroading. This article will attempt to record some of that history while there is still available the knowledge and memories of the men and women who can say "I was there."