However, instead of using a traditional adhesion railroad given the incredibly steep grades promoters decided to try a cog, or rack, railway system that essentially used a fixed gear-like device in the middle of the tracks to help the train gain better traction ascending the mountain. In 1889 the road was renamed as the Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway and began construction within the year. Cable, then president of the Rock Island, along with his son. The company sold $500,000 worth of stock to finance the project and Major John Hulbert was named president.Īfter the railroad's founding Simmons' role in the operation seemed to dwindle as other names took over such as R.R. Realizing that a railroad would be the best and most efficient means of transporting guests to the top of Pike's Peak, and with resources already available, Simmons founded the Pike's Peak & Manitou Railway in 1888. Simmons was already a successful businessman who had founded the Simmons Beautyrest Mattress Company.
So, a cheaper alternative was decided upon by building a plain dirt road for wagons up the slope.īefore this latest plan could be completed Zalmon Simmons rode a mule to the top of the famed summit and was so awestruck by the beauty that he firmly believed it should be available for the general public to see and experience as well.
While some grading was completed the plan stalled due to money issues. It was to use standard adhesion to scale the mountain with a ruling grade of 5% and switchbacks to keep grades as manageable as possible. Midland, Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe (Santa Fe), and Rock Island.īy the 1880s with tourism to Pike's Peak and the surrounding mountains already well-established the first attempt at constructing a railroad to the summit for visitors was chartered in 1884. Railroads including the Colorado & Southern (Burlington), Colorado The new municipality quickly grew with hotels, spas, and other attractions settling there as well as the surrounding towns of Colorado City,ĭestination just south of Denver also boasted the services of four major The town of Colorado Springs was founded on Jby William Recognized the shear beauty of the Rocky Mountains' Rampart Range and Have been possible were it not for the tourism industry that sprung up The idea for what became the Manitou & Pike's Peak Railway would never