About the Desert Empire Project

In 1948, the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad commissioned a film entitled Desert Empire . It depicted Utah rail operations from Green River to Ogden.



41 years later, the D&RGW was no more, having purchased the Southern Pacific and adopting that name. From there the remains of the Rio Grande disappeared over the years. Today, of the dozens of lines that existed in the past, the Union Pacific, BNSF, Utah Railway, Utah Central Railway and the Savage Bingham & Garfield are the only railroads left operating.



This blog is co-authored by Josh Bernhard, Jacob Lyman and Matt Liverani, railfans and historians from the Intermountain West.



"Through the Rockies...not around them!"

