By this time next month the UP engines stored or waiting for work at the Burnham Shops yard will be relocated, the Safety First signs removed and the doors of the engine facilities closed for good. The closing is due to the rapid decline of coal use in the region (closing of coal fired power plants in Denver and Colorado Springs) as well as a cost savings measure as the repair operations will be relocated to the UP’s existing heavy locomotive repair shops in Arkansas.
This repair facility was first established by the Denver &Rio Grande Railroad in the 1870’s. The facility was named after George Burnham who was a principle in the Baldwin Locomotive Works. The massive facility served as the main locomotive and car repair shops for the region and over the years saw many narrow and standard gauge equipment constructed, repaired and maintained by the skilled craftsmen that called Burnham home. In the 1950’s the facility produced the metal narrow gauge passenger cars that are still used on the Durango and Silverton Railroad.
A lot of the original Burnham Shop buildings are still intact (though none deemed historic), including the Coach Shop where trains such as the Prospector (Denver/Salt Lake City/Ogden) and later the Rio Grande Zephyr (Denver/Salt Lake City) were serviced and overhauled. The site still retains the old engine wash rack as well as one of the last operating turntables in the region. It was originally installed in 1941 and then overhauled by the UP in 1913. In the heyday of steam the Burnham Shops were home to DRGW’s largest locomotives, the ALCO 2-8-8-2. That must have been a sight to see.
The railroad plans to put the 70-acre Burnham property up for sale. It is located in a prime redevelopment area and sits adjacent to a Denver RTD light rail station.
