Wesley Bolin Memorial Plaza

CAVALCADE THE PEA VINE: RAILS TO THE MINES

By the late 1880s, mining firms in the central mountains of Arizona Territory looked hopefully toward the construction of a north-to-south railroad that would serve their shipping requirements. Rail service was desperately needed to replace the costly and cumbersome mule trains that were then the only means of transporting ore from the mines to the smelters.

A first effort to provide such service took shape in the Prescott and Arizona Central, which laid a track from the Santa Fe's east-west line at Seligman (then called Prescott Junction) southward through Chino Valley. The line reached its terminal point at Prescott, then the territorial capital, on the last day of 1886. But from the time the final spike was driven, the P&AC's, substandard construction, high rates, ignored timetables, inadequate rolling stock, and general poor management foretold the collapse of the operation.

Frank M. Murphy, a Prescott businessman whose name is intertwined with the history of central Arizona railroading, resolved to succeed where the P&AC had failed. Murphy was a man of great determination and imagination as well as a consummate promoter. His plans, presented to the territorial legislature in 1891, won strong support: specifically, passage of a bill granting 20 years of tax-exempt status to Arizona railroads.

Simon Murphy of Chicago, Frank's relative, and Marshall Field of department-store renown put their money behind Frank Murphy's plan. With cash in hand and the support of the legislature, Murphy began construction of the Santa Fe, Prescott and Phoenix Railroad in January, 1892.

Pushing south from the Santa Fe main line at a point near Ash Fork, the new route went to Prescott, curved southwest to Skull Valley and Hillside to skirt rugged mountains, then angled past the Congress Mine and on to Phoenix. Even this circuitous path, however, presented construction crews with formidable obstacles. The most difficult challenge was at Limestone Canyon, about 35 miles north of Prescott.

To negotiate the irregular terrain, the tracks through the canyon twisted and turned along a serpentine path and climbed and descended steep grades at 5,000 to 6,000-foot elevations. The rails, laid at standard gauge (4 feet 8½ inches apart), were staked down atop wooden trestles, several of which were more than 50 feet high. In all, 40 trestles were erected for this single canyon. At places S-shaped curves required the alternating outside rail to be elevated above its mate, causing the sturdy Brooks 4-6-0 engines of the SFP&P to perform a swaying dance high above the canyon floor. The steep grades and repeated twists and turns earned the line the nickname "Pea Vine."

During heavy use, the tall wooden trestles swayed, creaked, and groaned under the weight of locomotives and ore-filled cars. Ultimately, maintenance problems and the ever-present fear of derailment dictated relocation of this segment of the railroad.

An alternate route across 165-foot-deep Hell Canyon, rejected earlier because of the difficulties anticipated, was eventually selected. A 647-foot-long bridge, built from both sides at once, spanned the gorge. An improved structure at the same location is still in use today.

Meanwhile, the SFP&P had reached Prescott in April, 1893, and Phoenix in February, 1895. With it came reduced freight costs, Eastern capitalists, and large-scale investment for the promising mining industry of Arizona Territory.