ANTONITO — A locomotive that once transported President William Howard Taft to Gunnison and spent most of its 50-year working life hauling train cars over Cumbres, Marshall and La Veta passes for the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad is headed back to southern Colorado after spending decades in a Colorado Springs park.
The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad and the city of Colorado Springs reached an agreement that will lease the 1883 steam locomotive to the railroad.
“It’s a very rare opportunity for us to acquire additional equipment that actually worked on this line and to be able to restore it and bring it back to service,” said John Bush, president of the Cumbres and Toltec.
The locomotive was retired from service and donated to Colorado Springs in 1938. It’s on display in Antlers Park.
The steam engine is expected to spend this summer undergoing restoration by the railroad’s mechanics, The Pueblo Chieftain reported. Once restored, the steam engine will end up pulling the historic passenger cars, which also date to the 1880s.
On May 23, the railroad will open its 45th season carrying tourists.
