Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad

History:

On June 28th , 1967, Dr. John M. Birmingham opened the Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad for business. The CC&V RR has been carryingpassengers ever since. The Railroad has always been a family business, now operated and managed by Jim and his family. John still plays an active role in overseeing the operations of the Railroad.

John Birmingham was born into a railroad family, his father was an engineer for the Union Pacific Railroad and also his grandfather. In 1965 he purchased two locomotives from the Climax Molybdenum mine of Colorado. They were located in Mexico, one was fully operational the second was 60% through a major overhaul. John spent a lot of spare time and vacations to build the railroad, he had help from his friends and family.

The gift shop and ticket office now next to the original Cripple Creek Midland Depot was rescued from the old Midland Terminal line, Originally built in 1894 as the Anaconda station, was moved to Bull Hill after the fire of 1904 destroyed most of Anaconda. It was moved to its present location in 1968. It was impossible to still find a water tower so John had one made of wood by Denver Tank and Reel and moved to its present location.