The Moffat Line

By the latter part of the nineteenth century, the railroad was king. Railroad lines crisscrossed the North American continent, allowing for the long-distance transportation of oil, coal, lumbar, gold, and other valuables. Despite high operating costs and fierce competition, the search for better and more profitable routes was constant. David Moffat, a banker and railroad executive, dreamed of a direct route across the Rocky Mountains, a route that would allow him to tap into Colorados vast miner