Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

A train derailment near Grand Junction on Memorial Day weekend, 1920, This photo shows a 1918 train wreck in Tennessee that is believed to be the deadliest in U.S. history, killing more than 170 people. took the lives of the train's engineer and fireman. Such accidents weren't unusual in the early decades of the 20th century, but railroad safety was beginning to improve. Below is a link to my history column in The Daily Sentinel.

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Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

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GJ train depot opened with a quake

Grand Junction's Union Train Depot is 120 years old this spring. And it opened just a day before a massive earthquake struck San Francisco, sending hundreds of refugees through Grand Junction. This photo shows what the depot looked like about 1914. My column from The Daily Sentinel is linked below.

May 121 min read

Grand Junction gets mountain water

After several decades of dealing with muddy water from the Grand (Colorado) and Gunnison Rivers, This sign at the base of Kannah Creek shows the Kannah Creek drainage. the city of Grand Junction finally achieved its goal of obtaining clean mountain water from the Kannah Creek drainage on Grand Mesa on July 4, 1912. My history column from The Daily Sentiinel is linked below.

Apr 271 min read

Trying to answer questions about GJ Indian School

Officials from History Colorado will be in Clifton April 21, seeking public assistance as they attempt to find more information about the cemetery at the old Grand Junction Indian School on D Road east of Grand Junction. But the location of the cemetery is just one of many questions regarding the school. Below is a link to my Daily Sentinel history column discussing those questions.

Apr 161 min read

Powerful new technology rocked the Southwest 1,500 years ago

When bows and arrows arrived in the Great Plains, Rocky Mountains and desert Southwest, they soon supplanted older weapons. When they were combined with horses centuries later, they transformed many Native groups into fierce hunters and warriors. My history column from The Daily Sentinel is linked below.

Mar 301 min read

Indian ponies and irrigation ditches

The Kiefer family was one of the earliest pioneer families in Mesa County, and were especially important in the development of the Lower Valley. My column about the family is linked below.

Mar 191 min read

There are lots of books about train wrecks throughout the country, but I found little about train catastrophes here in Colorado.

However, this book, about the early years of the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad has some great information about the first railroad to serve Western Colorado.

Copies of it are available at the Mesa County Libraries, and I found several copies online.

ABOUT ME

I retired as editorial page editor of The Daily Sentinel in Grand Junction, Colorado in 2014. Since then, I've continued to write a twice-a-month history column for the Sentinel, while seizing every opportunity I can, with my wife Judy or my horses, to enjoy the beautiful outdoors of the Colorado Plateau.

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Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

FEATURED POST

Never Miss a New Post.

TRAIN OF THOUGHT

Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

GJ train depot opened with a quake

Grand Junction gets mountain water

Trying to answer questions about GJ Indian School

Powerful new technology rocked the Southwest 1,500 years ago

Indian ponies and irrigation ditches

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ABOUT ME

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Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

FEATURED POST

Never Miss a New Post.

TRAIN OF THOUGHT

Memorial Day train wreck was not unusal during early 20th century

GJ train depot opened with a quake

Grand Junction gets mountain water

Trying to answer questions about GJ Indian School

Powerful new technology rocked the Southwest 1,500 years ago

Indian ponies and irrigation ditches

BOB's Book Picks

ABOUT ME

SUBSCRIBE

BOB's
Book
Picks