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The Bullfrog-Las Vegas Railroad

Background:
The Las Vegas & Tonopah Railroad was created in 1906 by Senator J. Ross Clark to tap the riches of the Rhyolite ("Bullfrog District") and Goldfield mining districts. Another railroad in the area, the Bullfrog Goldfield, connected Rhyolite with Goldfield to the north, and paralleled the LV&T for part of this same distance. In 1908 the BG was taken over by the Tonopah & Tidewater RR, which ran from Ludlow, California (a connection on the Santa Fe) almost due north to Beatty, Nevada (passing near the eastern boundary of Death Valley, and making connections with the Death Valley RR). In 1918, due to the fading fortunes of the Bullfrog District, the LV&T was forced into abandonment by the USRA, and the rails pulled up shortly after. The T&T struggled through the 1930s, was also eventually abandoned, and its rails pulled up by 1941.

In February 1906 a small mining town named Transvaal briefly flourished to the northeast of Beatty; all claims were owned by the Transvaal-Nevada Mining Company. By May 1906 the settlement of Transvaal was abandoned, but the company that owned all the mines was bought by an international mining conglomerate (with strong South African ties) and renamed Transvaal-Nevada Ltd. All the former company's claims and holdings were included in the buyout, and soon the T-A Ltd had surveyors and prospectors scouring western Nevada for undiscovered mineral deposits.

A New Chapter:
In 1918 a former employee of the defunct LV&T took up an offer from his cousin in South Africa, on the South African Railways (SAR). Lewis Adams, a former section superintendent on the LV&T, was instantly fascinated with the Beyer-Garratt articulated locomotives used in abundance on the SAR, as well as the 3-foot 6-inch "Cape Gauge" used throughout South Africa and Rhodesia. The Cape Gauge allowed a mainline-standard railroad to be laid at a much lower cost than American Standard Gauge, and allowed heavier trains to run on than 3-foot gauge; Cape Gauge can also negotiate difficult terrain and tight curves like 3-foot gauge for a negligible cost difference. What most impressed Adams was the ability of the Beyer-Garratts to spread heavy loads over multiple axles, yet still articulate extremely well across uneven track and tight turns, all while utilizing rails as light as 50 pounds and per-axle adhesion ratings comparable to American mainline locomotives. Adams was also involved with the extensive SAR 2-foot narrow gauge lines, complete with Beyer-Garratt locomotives. These 2-foot narrow gauge lines were very productive and profitable for the South African Railways, and were able to successfully negotiate the rolling hills and steep grades encountered throughout South Africa. Most of the 2-foot narrow gauge lines were laid with 20- to 40-lb rail, yet could easily handle Beyer-Garratt locomotives as heavy as 62 tons. Grades as steep as 1 in 33 and curves as tight as 150ft radii were all in a day's work for these unique locomotives.

In the meantime, Transvaal-Nevada Ltd began buying up dormant and defunct claims in the Bullfrog & Goldfield mining districts in western Nevada, as well as several dormant claims in the Pahute Mesa area east of Beatty. Most of these claims had long since been given up as exhausted, but comprehensive geological surveys revealed substantial remaining quantities. T-N Ltd delivered heavy equipment to the new mines, and soon began full-scale mining in the early 1920s by using open-pit techniques. Copper, zinc, silver, gold, uranium, plutonium, tungsten, vanadium, and many other minerals were now being affordably extracted, but road transport was still in its infancy and unable to cope with the massive transport needs. T-N Ltd re-laid rails on the former LV&T and BG/T&T grades from Tonopah to the Bullfrog District, and trains once again rumbled north through Tonopah to an eventual Southern Pacific connection. The new railroad was named the Bullfrog Tonopah Railroad, and corporate ownership was through Transvaal-Nevada Ltd. All this activity did not go unnoticed, and the districts were soon inundated by speculators.

The Pahute Mesa District mines were proving to be very rich as well as extensive, with initial reports giving a life expectancy of 40-50 years. A proposed rail route was surveyed out of Tonopah, initially heading east and then turning south through Ralston Valley and Cactus Flat. Optimism was soon tempered by speculators who had purchased property throughout Cactus & Gold Flats, as well as Stonewall Flats east of Goldfield, completely blocking any rail access from the north by T-N Ltd. All efforts to purchase these properties were met with exorbitant demands, and all other legal efforts failed to acquire a right-of-way. When sufficient water was quickly found in the area, widespread farming was initiated and the landowners would not even allow roads to be built across their properties. The mines in the Pahute Mesa District were abundant in minerals, and open-pit techniques were providing a great deal of initial profitability and excitement. T-N Ltd was desperate to open a transportation route to the area.

An initial survey through Fortymile Canyon showed promise for a Narrow Gauge railroad, but was thought to be too expensive for a standard-gauge railroad. Grading began for a 3-foot line south out of Beatty, with plans to purchase second-hand equipment and rails from defunct Colorado lines, but early on costs began to soar and construction was put on hold until a suitable alternative could be found; local ranchers also put up objections to the new proposal, and the ICC added additional hurdles involving the purchase of the ex-Colorado stock. The timing could not have been any fortuitous for T-N Ltd, for by 1926 the BTRR was in search of a reliable and competent Chief Mechanical Engineer. Adams was still in close contact with several former LV&T employees who were now working on the BTRR, and they easily convinced the South African portion of management to hire Adams as the new CME. Adams returned to western Nevada as the new Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Bullfrog Tonopah Railroad on November 11, 1926. The very first thing the new CME did was to thoroughly review the surveys and initial construction reports on the desired rail route through Fortymile Canyon to the mines.

Current access to the new mines was through Fortymile Canyon via Amargosa Valley using a wagon road, as well as secondary access through Amargosa & Plutonium Vallies. Equipment was freighted into the mines and mining began, while awaiting the completion of a rail route to transport the ore out; meanwhile, the ore was kept under wraps in storage sheds under the watchful eyes of armed guards. A limited amount of ore was trickling out via wagons, but a solution needed to be found quickly. CME Adams quickly prepared a preliminary report recommending completion of the rail route through Fortymile Canyon via Amargosa Valley, but utilizing a 2-foot gauge rail line and Garratt locomotives to a transfer point near Amargosa Valley. Much of the line between the Bullfrog District and Amargosa Valley (Lathrop Wells) could be re-laid on rehabilitated former LV&T grade. 40- to 50-lb rail could be utilized to reduce construction costs, and locomotives as heavy as 70 tons could be run with per-axle weights as low as 5.83-tons. One of the locomotive designs proposed by Adams was a 2-foot gauge 2-8-2+2-8-2 Garratt under consideration in South Africa, but had departed for the BTRR before the design could be finalized. To overcome interchange difficulties between narrow and standard-gauge lines, Adams proposed simple gravity-loading hopper facilities, as the primary traffic over the lines was ore.

Management was enthusiastic about the 2-foot gauge proposal and economical costs, and immediately contacted Baldwin & ALCO to initiate construction of the Garratt locomotives. The proposed route through Fortymile Canyon was re-surveyed for a 2-foot line, and once approved, construction of the new grade was pushed forward. Adams submitted further reports proposing acquisition of the remaining former LV&T grade to Las Vegas, relaying track on this rehabilitated grade, and re-establishing a connection with the Union Pacific in an effort to reduce overall transportation costs. A major factor in the original establishment of the BTRR was the existing standard-gauge rail connection at Tonopah; however, overall costs for shippers was higher by going north, and Adams advanced cost estimates showing reduced overall shipping costs by re-establishing the rail route south to Las Vegas and the Union Pacific. But this wasn't all Adams had in mind; he also proposed laying the new rail grade to 3-foot 6-inch "Cape Gauge" in order to lower costs, and utilize Garratt locomotives for motive power. Cape Gauge would allow the use of 50- to 60-lb rail for initial construction, with heavier rail to be laid after the railroad had proved itself.

A connection to the Santa Fe was already in place at Beatty through the Tonopah & Tidewater Railroad, but at this point the T&T was more concerned with their subsidiary operations in Death Valley farther to the south than the budding prospects outside of Beatty; their track was in poor condition and equipment roster unable to handle the significant volumes being projected by T-N Ltd. The lack of enthusiasm from the T&T convinced T-N Ltd that they would have to build their own railroad. A preliminary purchase offer for the entire T&T line was rejected by the latter, as they were still handling a fair amount of traffic from the Death Valley mines and their borax claims outside Boron, California, were not yet fully developed. The intent with the T&T purchase was to operate the line as far south as a newly-established connection wtih the Union Pacific at Baker, California, and abandoning the remaining trackage between Baker and Ludlow. This would have provided a more direct route for ore shipments, but T&T management rejected all offers out of hand. When after the Death Valley Railroad was abandoned in 1931 and the Boron property placed in operation, Pacific Coast Borax (the parent owner of the T&T) approached T-N Ltd with a more realistic purchase proposal, but by then the conglomerate's railroads were in operation and had no need for an additional rail line. A shortened connection to the shipping ports in Los Angeles was indeed attractive, but at the time a significant portion of the ore from the Pahute Mesa District was being sent to Utah smelters over the UP, and eventually made its way overseas through ports in the Gulf of Mexico and Los Angeles.

Standardization:
One problem with railroads of different gauges interchanging with each other is having to unload cargo and goods from the cars of one railroad to the cars of another; this typically results in a high incidence of loss and theft due to excess handling. With the majority of cargo being ore carried in bottom-dumping hopper cars, special "High Line" elevated transfer bins could be built to dump the ore into fixed hopper bins, which in turn would dump into hopper cars of a different rail line waiting below. This method would result in minimal loss and a relatively quick turn-around time for the empties to return to the mines. Under Adams' proposal, these methods of transfer would be standardised: 18-inch gauge electrical trams could handle raw ore from the mines, dump into 2-foot gauge trains, which would bring the ore out through Fortymile Canyon to transfer the ore to Cape Gauge trains, which in turn transfer the ore to standard-gauge Union Pacific trains. While this might seem like a nightmare for traffic managers, the overall scale of economies involved would be very favorable to the bottom line. One must keep in mind that most large mines have a variety of gauges involved, and standardization is vital for profitability. With the majority of the mines in the Pahute Mesa District owned by T-N Ltd, standardization would be achieved fairly quickly; the few independent mines would also be forced to adopt the conglomerate's standardization plans in order to remain in business, unless they wanted to risk their precious cargo being freighted out on wagons or unreliable motor trucks.

Management and directors were satisfied with Adams' proposals, and wasted no time in acting. Designs for locomotives and rolling stock were quickly finalized and put out for tender; ALCO responded quickly by acquiring licenses from Beyer Peacock for successful Garratt designs. Another unique development was the fabrication of special 6-wheel multi-gauge trucks, complete with knuckle couplers, that would allow the use of standard-gauge box and flat cars to operate on the smaller gauge sections; special overhead cranes were constructed at transfer points to lift the cars off their trucks, and placed on to Narrow Gauge trucks. This method used electrically-powered four-legged mobile cranes to lift cars straight up with chains and straps, then shuttle the truck-less car over to the Narrow Gauge tracks and vice-versa; this was the forerunner to the large container cranes in use today to shift box containers between trucks, trains, and ships. This allowed the transfer of entire cars over various gauges of track, so that cargo could realistically arrive unmolested to its final destination. These cars would not be part of the ore trains, but would be operated as separate consists. Water and liquid tank cars could also be transferred with this method.

Construction of the 2-foot line through Fortymile Canyon was immediately started, as was acquisition of the former LV&T grade between Beatty and Las Vegas; much of the original grade had been widened and paved by the Nevada Highway Commission as an auto road, but the state was very accomodating in assisting with the construction of the new rail line that paralleled the pavement. Shop facilities were under construction in Beatty and Las Vegas. The Southern Pacific was not as concerned as some had expected, since most of the construction traffic came in over their lines from Hazen via Tonopah, and in the future would be able to carry nearly 15% of the total traffic in and out of the Pahute Mesa District; this traffic managed to keep the Tonopah branch of the SP open until well after World War II. A limited amount of construction traffic was brought in via the T&T, as well as some early ore shipments, but the poor overall state of the T&T prevented them from taking advantage of the opportunities presented. Recurrent flash floods all along the line and the unpredictable nature of the Amargosa River only added to annual woes of the T&T.

The Great Depression did not affect T-N Ltd and the BTRR as hard as it did most other mining and rail industries; the conglomerate was able to shift its markets overseas, and ore shipments were routed over Union Pacific lines to the ports of Los Angeles, and off to customers over the oceans. For a time, a portion of traffic was also destined to help in the construction of Hoover Dam just outside Las Vegas. New deposits were being discovered at the rate of 2-3 per month in the Pahute Mesa District, while in the Bullfrog District open-pit gold mining remained constant. Limited crude oil deposits were also discovered at the northern end of the District, near the ranches and farmland of Gold Flat. By now the residents of Gold Flat had become more amicable with the mining company and railroad, and a branch line was built out of Tonopah to service the area. Some ranchers even leased portions of their property to oil exploration, keeping the new branch line busy over the next several years. Times were good for T-N Ltd and BTRR, but the winds of change were about to blow with gale force upon them.

WAR FORCES CHANGE:
World War II officially began on September 1, 1939, and sent ripples through the management structure of Transvaal-Nevada Ltd; a portion of its directors, managers, and capital investors were German and Austrian, and a sizeable portion of its overseas business went to Germany and Japan. As America levied increased sanctions against Japan its partners, T-N Ltd was forced to reorganize and purge all directors, shareholders, and investors who were not from Allied or neutral countries. The new company, Transvaal-American (TA), was forced to spin off the railroad and transport branches as a separate corporation, the Bullfrog Las Vegas Railroad (BFLV RR). However, the same war that had nearly doomed the conglomerate now proved to be a boon to the new companies, as the minerals being mined in the Pahute Mesa District were deemed to be vital to the war effort. Lewis Adams was elevated to Chief Operating Officer of the BFLVRR, and ensured that the previous sound operating procedures and methods would continue to be practiced in the new railroad.

On October 29, 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Las Vegas Bombing and Gunnery Range, encompassing what is now the Nevada Test Site and Nellis Air Force Aerial Gunnery Range. More than ninety percent of this new bombing and gunnery range was in the public domain, including the Pahute Mesa District, making it difficult for the US Army Air Force to conduct any significant operations. Condemnation proceedings began in August 1941 against the private claims and landowners within the range, including the Pahute Mesa District. But, disaster for Transvaal-American was averted when waivers were granted by President Roosevelt, due to the critical need for some of the minerals being mined in the District and the location of the District at the western edge of the new range.

Throughout World War II, TA and the BFLV prospered. As the war progressed, the Manhattan project gained importance in the race for the first operational atomic bomb, and the demand for minerals such as uranium, plutonium, and tungsten reached such a peak that the mining company placed a priority on these above all else. These minerals were found throughout the district and the company supplied a significant amount to the overall war effort. Cost analyses and studies were done on the possibility of upgrading the 2-foot gauge lines to Cape Gauge, but was deemed to be not worth the expense as the Narrow Gauge lines were efficient and profitable. Heavier rails were laid throughout the network as part of long-term capital improvement plans, some more troublesome portions of grades were re-aligned and improved, and bridges were strengthened, giving the railroad a favorable outlook on its future.

After the war ended, Transvaal-American enjoyed tremendous success, and solidified its hold over the Pahute Mesa District. However, in 1951 TA and BFLV ironically found themselves facing the possibility of being shutout of the Pahute Mesa District completely by the very effort they were doing so much to assist with. The Atomic Energy Commission was granted a large portion of the Air Force range for the new Nevada Proving Ground (later Nevada Test Site), and the western boundary encompassed all of Fortymile Canyon. At first, the mining company was given six months to vacate their claims, but an injunction was granted by a federal judge while each side gained time to present their case. In the meantime, Senators Pat McCarran and George Malone, with help from Congressman Walter S. Baring, drafted a compromise in which TA and BFLV were granted a "grandfather clause," and allowed to keep their active claims open as well as the 2-foot gauge railroad route to the mines, since the District was primarily inside the western boundary of the existing Air Force range and only minimally intruding into the proving ground; the 2-foot narrow gauge line ran at the base of Yuccan Mountain, on the western edge of Jackass Flat, where atomic bombs were about to be dropped but out of the critical blast impact area. Because of the impending atomic tests on Jackass Flats, all mining operations on Shoshone Mountain were abandoned.

The compromise restricted all traffic in and out of the area to be carried on the 2-foot line for a period of 50 years, renewable upon expiration, only to be revoked if TA relinquished ownership to its claims in the District. The mining company could file an application with the AEC for future explorations, which would require AEC representatives to escort mining company employees during these exploration trips to ensure that the proving ground's integrity was not compromised. Further, all minerals deemed vital to national security (i.e., uranium, plutonium, and tungsten) would be offered for sale first to the AEC at a discount; if the AEC declined or did not respond within a pre-defined time, then TA would be free to sell these on the regulated market. Additionally, as future nuclear detonations were planned for the Nevada Proving Ground, no mining or transport activity could occur within two days of a planned detonation, nor for two days following the same. In order to try to prevent espionage regarding any activity at the test site, any and all mining company employees were subject to the same security screening as proving ground employees, and were further subject to physical searches at any time while on proving ground property. There was great emphasis on trains, and only trains, being allowed to transport ore and supplies in and out of the District, as these were considered less of a security risk; vehicles could too easily stray from roads so the temptation was eliminated entirely. However, a limited amount of light vehicles were allowed to operate within the District under AEC supervision for administrative and maintenance purposes.

The driving factor behind this compromise was detonation of an atomic bomb by the Soviet Union, and the necessity of the uranium, plutonium, and other vital minerals being mined in the Pahute Mesa District to remain in American possession. The AEC was granted right of first refusal for the purchase of these minerals, virtually guaranteeing a risk-free supply for decades to come, and the compromise in practice was more of a government-private sector partnership. The AEC had a need for many of the minerals being extracted by the mining company, and the AEC had no practical means of basically duplicating the mining company's current work; the mining company and railroad became an exclusive private contractor under AEC supervision. The minerals extracted from the area that were not deemed critical for national security were able to be freely sold on the world market, a huge side benefit for the company.

Prosperous Maturity:
In 1956 Lewis Adams retired from the company he had helped build into an international success; this year also marked the retirement of the last of the steam-powered Garratts, with the railroad switching to diesel locomotives. The BFLVRR was selected to construct and manage nearly all rail lines used throughout the Air Force range and proving ground. The mining company and railroad prospered for the next two decades, and the partnership with the AEC (later the Department of Energy) thrived until the energy crisis of the early 1970s. The oil deposits located around Gold Flat had never been officially condemned by the federal government, and were technically still owned by the mining company; with foreign oil prices up to that time fairly stable and inexpensive, it was deemed too costly to push the oil development issue with the AEC. But when the OPEC oil embargo hit the United States, the mining company sought permission to exercise its oil rights around Gold Flat. This was firmly denied by the AEC due to security concerns, and legal wrangling ensued for several years. Bitterness between the AEC/DOE and the mining company developed and nearly wiped out the long partnership both had enjoyed. Before the rift could develop into a permanent split, however, the announcement of the building of the Alaska Pipeline negated any economical value of the mining company's oil claims around Gold Flat. Prudence prevailed, ruffled feathers were smoothed over, and both sides got back to the business at hand.

The 1980s passed fairly uneventfully, with the quiet abandonment of all railroad trackage north of Beatty; open-pit mines around Beatty were still prosperous, justifying keeping rail lines in the area operational. In 1992 a moratorium on nuclear detonations was officially recognized by the United States, and for the first time in nearly fifty years the future of the test site was in doubt. The mining company was optimistic about this turn of events, and held the belief this might result in greater exploration & development freedom on test site grounds (should it not revert to Air Force control). In the mid-1990s it became clear that the new purpose of the test site would be to create and develop a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain; this was news to TA, as active claims were located in and around the proposed repository site. Negotiations ensued, in which additional areas inside the Air Force range were opened for exploration and development, while the mines in and around Yucca Mountain would be closed to preserve the integrity of the future repository. The 2-foot gauge line, still active and in heavy use, would remain in place and operational, and would play an important role in the future of the repository as it ran very near to the two planned entry portals. In exchange for relinquishing all claims and mining operations around Yucca Mountain, the company's previous claims on Shoshone Mountain were allowed to be re-opened, as well as the ability to exploit previous explorations around Silent Butte.

On July 23, 2002, President George W. Bush signed legislation enabling the Department of Energy to move forward in preparing to construct a national nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, and TA & BFLV moved into an even closer partnership with the DOE. The DOE was quietly looking to open a railroad route for transporting nuclear waste from around the country to Yucca Mountain, and BFLVRR surveyors and engineers lent their able hands. Only twenty years prior, the trackage north from Beatty to Tonopah had been abandoned, and was still in reasonably good condition; this grade could be rehabilitated at minimum expense, but what remained of the former SP grade north of Tonopah to Hazen would require substantially more work. As a result, the DOE surveyed several alternate routes in order to bypass population centers: two due north from Tonopah through Austin to Beowawe to a UP connection (former SP); one from Tonopah east to Caliente (UP connection); one north-northeast from the Yucca Mountain repository through Groom Lake and then eastward to Caliente; and two routes from the repository east-southeast near Jean, Nevada (UP connection). The DOE favored transporting nuclear waste by rail all the way to the repository, so the BFLV is reworking their entire Cape Gauge line to accept a third rail for standard-gauge train operations. Operating trains with nuclear waste through Las Vegas is highly unlikely, but the addition of the third rail will allow the operation of other standard-gauge equipment all the way to Las Vegas.

Prior to the presidential election of Barack Obama, plans were underway to convert the entire line from Beatty to Las Vegas to standard gauge by removing the third Cape Gauge rail, and acquire refurbished diesel locomotives from the mainline railroads in order to retire the remaining Cape Gauge equipment. The driving factor behind this was the preparation for a new standard gauge rail line north or east from Tonopah to handle nuclear waste deliveries for the Yucca Mountain repository; BFLV trains were expected to pick up waste cars from Union Pacific mainline connections for delivery to the repository. The BFLV had proposed that the new rail line be double-tracked so freight trains can also operate on the new route, and offered to pay all additional expenses. Other rail operators had approached the DOE with proposals to operate the nuclear waste shipments, but none came close to the advantage held by BFLV, with its decades-long successful federal partnership and admirable safety record. The future for the BFLVRR was projected to be a bright one, until the Obama administration sided with Nevada Senator Harry Reid in shutting down all operations at Yucca Mountain. Currently, all plans to transport any hazardous waste over BFLV rails have been shelved indefinitely.
Silver State Specialties was created in 1999 to offer quality resin accessories, replacement parts and conversion kits, suitable for many 1/25-scale plastic model kits.  SSS specializes in accessories and parts for plastic model pickup, SUV, 4x4, and heavy truck & trailer kits.  1/32-scale and 1/35-scale parts and accessories will be available in the future for model truck kits, such as the 1/32 Monogram Snap-Tite and ERTL snap-together kits, as well as 1/35-scale Revell, Italeri, AFV Club, Trumpeter, Airfix, Heller, Tamiya, and other military model truck kits.  Some of these smaller scale model kits are quite well detailed, and a wide variety of photo-etched, resin, and other accessories are widely available for most of these military truck model kits.

Silver State Specialties is working on resin accessories and complete kits for G- gauge outdoor garden railway trains ("Large Scale") in 1/24th-scale. Some patterns have been completed, and many more are under construction. These kits and accessories will include complete Beyer-Garratt style of locomotives and Narrow Gauge ore hopper cars, as well as 24-inch & 30-inch industrial equipment in this same scale.

SSS also has master patterns partially completed for many 1/16-scale model truck accessories and conversion kits, mainly for the Monogram-Revell 1/16-scale model truck kits.  Some projected accessories for these 1/16-scale kits are front drive axles, different wheels and tires, air cleaner accessories, pusher and tag axles, oil filters and engine accessories, and possibly different engines.  Cab & hood conversion kits remain a possibility for these monsters as well, but are many years away from being offered as there are more pressing projects to push forward with first.  But someday they should be available!

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Last updated on 11/14/2006