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Royal Gorge with railroad tracks, Colorado, circa 1910

Subjects
Mountains & HillsRailroads & TrainsRivers & Streams
Card type
Lithograph
Date
c. 1915 (White Border)
Front of Royal Gorge with railroad tracks, Colorado, circa 1910, c. 1915 lithograph postcard
Front
Back of Royal Gorge with railroad tracks, Colorado, circa 1910, c. 1915 lithograph postcard
Back

About this postcard

The card, captioned "5. Royal Gorge, Colorado.", looks down the narrow Royal Gorge where the Arkansas River and a railroad track share the canyon floor between steep rock walls. The Royal Gorge is a dramatic canyon on the Arkansas River near Cañon City, Colorado, and in the late 19th century it became a celebrated railroad route after the Denver & Rio Grande built through the gorge; the route was also the focus of the 1878–1879 Royal Gorge War between the Denver & Rio Grande and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. The view emphasizes the engineering feat of threading a rail line through such confined terrain.

Postcard Details

Message

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5. Royal Gorge, Colorado. --- Post Card PLACE STAMP HERE DOMESTIC ONE CENT FOREIGN TWO CENTS FOR ADDRESS ONLY ROYAL GORGE, COLORADO — Is in the Grand Cañon of the Arkansas. It is a great upheaval in geological ages past. It is fifty feet wide at the bottom and but seventy feet wide a the top. The walls of the canyon rising a sheer 3,000 feet above the level of the river.
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Postcard record

Series5
ConditionGood
Place depictedRoyal Gorge, CO
Place mentionedRoyal Gorge, CO
NotesWhite border at bottom; blue printed caption; visible lithographic screen; faint diagonal crease in lower margin. No postmark. Divided-back color litho card with white border; printed descriptive text on the message side; light soiling and surface abrasion, no handwriting.

Cite this card

Royal Gorge with railroad tracks, Colorado, circa 1910, postcard, c. 1915. PostalPast Collection. https://postalpast.com/postcard/royal-gorge-with-railroad-tracks-colorado-circa-1910. Accessed October 24, 2026.