Twenty years ago, much of the far west side of the Salt Lake Valley was a windswept plain with fields of winter wheat and a handful of industrial rail lines. Cotton Belt GP60 9671 leads a 15 car M... (more)

A pair of EMD GP60s lead a 19 car Midvale Tramp through mature fields of dry wheat just north of Webly the morning of July 29, 1995.

The Midvale Tramp wanders through the weeds on the Bingham Branch in West Jordan on August 2, 1994. The 16 car train's destination is Kennecott Copper's interchange yard at Magna, 17.5 miles from ... (more)

A Savage Bingham & Garfield train spent the day parked in the old Rio Grande Welby Yard in West Jordan. The occasion offered a rare opportunity to catch a glimpse of the nocturnal Savage Bingham t... (more)

Rio Grande GP30s 3007, 3003, and 3015 pull the Midvale Tramp local through West Jordan on Feb. 26, 1994.

On President's Day 1994, SP's Midvale Tramp crosses the Bangerter Highway under construction in West Jordan. This phase of the new highway opened for traffic on Dec. 16, 1994.

On a sunny but chilly Presidents Day '94, SP's Midvale Tramp rolls slowly through West Jordan with 3 cars for Southwire and 58 for Kennecott Copper Corp.

For the first time in nearly a decade, a high hood six axle EMD worked the Midvale Tramp local on July 17, 1993. SP SD7R 1517 teams up with a GP30/GP40-2 combo pulling 16 cars through the Salt Lak... (more)

A fine trio of Rio Grande GP30s lead SP's Midvale Tramp through West Jordan on Dec. 26, 1992. Check out the Google Map link in satellite mode to reveal how much the area and right of way have chan... (more)

A picture of good old fashioned railroading as the Midvale Tramp takes a tour of the Bingham Branch in West Jordan.

SP's Midvale Tramp crosses the South Jordan Canal while descending a 1.56% grade on the Bingham Branch in West Jordan. This location is unrecognizable today as Utah Transit Authority's double trac... (more)

Rio Grande's Midvale Tramp wanders through dry farms of winter wheat approaching Welby Yard in West Jordan.

Rio Grande's Midvale Tramp local rambles down the Bingham Branch through the Bagley Industrial Park in West Jordan. Kennecott Copper's Bingham Canyon Mine is receding in the distance as the 12 car... (more)

Rio Grande's Midvale Tramp local departs Welby Yard with a single box car for loading at Interstate Brick in the Bagley Industrial Park. Welby was essentially the end of urban sprawl along Rio Gra... (more)

25 years ago, the southwestern Salt Lake Valley was primarily vast open space peppered with farm houses and dry wheat farms. Rio Grande's Midvale Tramp stands out among the nothingness approaching... (more)