Thistle, Utah
Encyclopedia
Thistle is a ghost town
in Utah County
, Utah, United States, about 65 miles (104.6 km) southeast of Salt Lake City. During the era of steam locomotive
s, the town's primary industry was servicing trains for the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
(often shortened to D&RG, D&RGW or Rio Grande). The fortunes of the town were closely linked with those of the railroad until the changeover to diesel locomotives, when the town started to decline.
In April 1983, a massive landslide (known as a slump) dammed the Spanish Fork River. The residents were evacuated as nearly 65000 acre.ft of water backed up, flooding the town. Thistle was almost completely destroyed; only a few structures were left partially standing. Federal and state government agencies have claimed this was the most costly landslide in United States history, the economic consequences of which affected the entire region. The landslide resulted in the first presidentially declared disaster area
in the state of Utah.
U.S. Route 6 (US-6), US-89 and the railroad (now part of Union Pacific Railroad
's Central Corridor
) were closed for several months, until they were rebuilt on a higher alignment overlooking the area. The remains of Thistle are visible from a rest area
along US-6 or from the California Zephyr
passenger train.
on the eastern side of the mountains and the Spanish Fork River on the west. In addition, Thistle Creek provides a route south from Thistle towards the communities of the Sanpete and Sevier Valleys. The Spanish Fork River flows northwest from Thistle, towards the city of Spanish Fork
, before reaching Utah Lake
.
These natural paths have provided the route of several transcontinental trails, highways and railroads since their discovery. The named transportation arteries passing through Thistle include: US-6 (originally numbered US-50), US-89, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
's Utah Division
(now part of Union Pacific Railroad
's Central Corridor
) and D&RGW's Marysvale branch line (abandoned because of the landslide).
tribes before the arrival of European settlers; two Ute Indian chiefs, Taby and Peteetneet, led seasonal migrations through the canyon each spring and fall. The first recorded journey by Europeans to modern Thistle was the Dominguez–Escalante Expedition, which was escorted through the territory by American Indian guides. A small group of Utes inhabiting the canyon frequently clashed with newcomers, and as a result were forcibly relocated in the 1870s.
Most of Thistle's residents were railroad employees sent to live in the town, but there were some who had settled before the railroads arrived. The first Europeans were part of the Mormon migration to Utah, and the first of these was the Pace family, who migrated from Nauvoo, Illinois
, reaching Thistle in 1848. Fifth-generation descendants of the Pace settlers continued to operate a family-owned cattle ranch until the town was evacuated. Other settlers included Mormons who originally settled elsewhere in Utah but subsequently arrived to homestead
fertile ground on Billies Mountain, on the north wall of the canyon. Among them was the mountain's presumed namesake, William Johnson. Homesteading was practiced in Thistle until the early 1900s. Until the arrival of the railroads the town's economy was based mainly on farming and ranching, although there was also some mining activity in the region, including a vein of asphaltum that was mined between 1892 and 1914.
spur line servicing coal mines near today's Scofield Reservoir
, built in 1878 by the Utah and Pleasant Valley Railway. By 1890, the Denver and Rio Grande Western, which acquired the line in a foreclosure sale in 1882, had rebuilt the line to standard gauge
. The D&RGW connected this line with one they had built west from Colorado
, completing a link from Salt Lake City to Denver.
The railroad built several facilities in Thistle to service and prepare trains for the change in grade and curvature of the line. The railroad placed helper engines on eastbound trains at Thistle for the ascent to Soldier Summit. The town provided a meal service for the trains until the use of on-board dining car
s eliminated the need for meal stops.
Thistle saw more rail traffic with the construction of the Marysvale branch line. This line branched from the main at Thistle, following modern US-89 towards mines near Marysvale
. Another line through Thistle, paralleling the D&RGW main, was built by the Utah Railway
. The two lines were later combined into a dual-track main line, as part of a trackage rights
agreement between the two companies.
Rail traffic through Thistle continued to increase as the Rio Grande partnered with connecting railroads, making the rail line through Thistle a bridge line
for transcontinental rail traffic. The growth of Thistle was closely tied to the success of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad throughout the era of steam locomotive
s.
At its peak, around 1917, Thistle had about 600 residents. The town's railroad infrastructure included a five-stall roundhouse
, depot, machine shop, and structures to restock passing trains with sand, coal and water. Non-railroad infrastructure included general stores, a post office, barber shop, saloon, pool hall, bakeries and restaurants. The largest building was a two-story schoolhouse, built in 1911.
In the 1950s, the Denver & Rio Grande Western began to phase out steam locomotives in favor of diesel locomotive
s. With the change in technology, Thistle faded in importance. Gradually the town shrank in population; the passenger depot was torn down in 1972 and the post office closed in 1974. By 1983, only a few families remained in Thistle.
Rio Grande maintenance personnel noticed unstable ground downstream from Thistle years before the landslide occurred. The maintenance crew repaired the track on several occasions, but did not fully investigate the problem. Beginning with the remnants of Hurricane Olivia, the autumn and winter of 1982–83 featured record-breaking snow and rainfall. As the spring thaw melted the winter snow, the mountains in the area became saturated with water.
By April 1983, track deformation was a serious issue. On April 13, the division trackmaster flew to Denver to explain the situation at a specially-called staff meeting. That same day, a Utah Highway Patrol
officer struck a newly created buckle in the highway that threw him against the roof of his vehicle. By the end of the day, a full maintenance crew was struggling to keep US-6 open. All trains were limited to speeds less than 10 miles per hour (4.5 m/s), and were accompanied by maintenance personnel who had to continually work to keep the tracks in-line. The last train to pass through downtown Thistle was the westbound Rio Grande Zephyr
, on April 14, 1983 at about 8:30 p.m. That evening, both US-6 and the rail line were closed. One westbound freight train that had already left Denver was turned back. All through trains between Denver and Salt Lake City were rerouted to Union Pacific Railroad's Overland Route
through Wyoming
. By April 16, the tracks were completely buried.
On April 17, a final attempt to keep the landslide from blocking the flow of the river failed. That day, the Utah Department of Transportation
and the Rio Grande announced plans to abandon the existing transportation arteries and build new corridors. Both the highway and railroad would be re-routed by blasting a path scaling the north wall of Spanish Fork Canyon. The new arteries would pass the slide by dynamiting through Billies Mountain, also along the north canyon wall. Concerned the dam could fail, the state of Utah eventually decided to build a tunnel to re-route the flow of the Spanish Fork River. Engineers estimated the dam created by the toe of the landslide would eventually reach between 200 feet (61 m) and 300 feet (91.4 m) tall. A mandatory evacuation order was issued for the town of Thistle. Volunteers transported as many people and belongings as possible to the small town of Birdseye
, about 5 miles (8 km) south. Most residents were able to recover only a fraction of their belongings; some had less than two hours notice before the water reached their house. Thistle's oldest resident celebrated her 90th birthday at the evacuation center in Birdseye. By the 18th, the waterline had reached the rooftops of the 22 previously occupied houses. By the 19th, an entire mountain was moving at about 2 foot (0.6096 m) per hour and US-6 was buried by 50 feet (15.2 m) of soil.
Governor Scott Matheson requested federal aid to deal with the situation. After a visit to the area by the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
, U.S. president Ronald Reagan
issued the first presidential disaster area
declaration for the state of Utah. The landslide eventually formed a dam that created a lake 3 miles (5 km) long and over 200 feet (61 m) deep. The residents of downstream Spanish Fork
were told to be prepared to evacuate. Engineers estimated that if the dam failed, they would have 30 to 45 minutes notice before the water reached the city.
By autumn, the tunnels to restore the flow of the river and drain the lake were operational. Shortly after, debates between former residents, neighboring residents and government agencies began on what to do with the dam created by the landslide; some wanted make the lake permanent. A study commissioned by the state engineer, to determine if the landslide dam could be used to retain water, recommended to build a new dam upstream from the landslide, rather than attempt engineering work on the landslide dam.
In the years following, the former residents of Thistle filed various lawsuits to recover their losses. In one, they claimed that their property was taken to rebuild the road and railroad without just compensation. Another lawsuit claimed negligence on the part of the D&RGW. The residents argued the railroad's maintenance workers knew the ground was unstable; however, they only repaired the track. The residents contended the slide could have been prevented by using a water drainage system to relieve pressure at the head of the unstable area. They further contended that such a system could have been put in place had the railroad thoroughly investigated the problem upon first noticing it. The engineering firm employed by the Rio Grande claimed their studies indicated the crown of the landslide was about 300 feet (91.4 m) above the level of the tracks, and did not know the true size of the unstable area until the slide was in motion. A jury absolved the D&RGW of responsibility. The plaintiffs appealed the decision, and a second trial in 1993 resulted in a $1.1 million award for the landowners (equivalent to $ million in ). The D&RGW filed suit against the Utah Railway over sharing the costs from the landslide. The Utah Railway has an ownership interest in the line, resulting from an older track sharing agreement.
.
The economic effects of the closure of these transportation arteries were felt throughout the western United States and devastated rural Utah. The operations of coal mines, uranium mines, turkey farms, animal feed companies, gypsum
mines, and cement and clay factories were severely impacted. At least two trucking firms and one oil-producing firm suspended or ceased operations. Southeastern Utah's tourism industry suffered without access for visitors from the north and west. Some people who lived and worked on opposite sides of the landslide area suddenly had commutes exceeding 100 miles (160.9 km). The highway patrol temporarily closed a weigh station
at Peerless (a location along the US-6 corridor near Helper
) and built a temporary weigh station near Salina
(along I-70 about 90 miles (144.8 km) south of Thistle), which saw a sudden increase in truck traffic. The highway patrol estimates the temporary facilities inspected 57,000 trucks and made 80 arrests.
The direct cost of the landslide was estimated at $200 million (equivalent to $ million in ). However, some estimates of the total cost reached as high as $400 million (equivalent to $ million in ). The D&RGW estimated the slide cost them $80 million in lost revenue (equivalent to $ million in ), averaging $1 million per day the tracks were out-of-service. This figure included $19 million in payments to the Union Pacific for the use of their lines. The United States Geological Survey
and the state of Utah have called the Thistle landslide the most costly ever in the United States.
signals gave a green light to the first train to pass through the Thistle area since the slide began, an eastbound freight train coming from the Southern Pacific Railroad
at Ogden
, destined for Herington, Kansas
. Although the line's re-opening on Independence Day
was coincidental, the first train became part of the local holiday celebrations. The first passenger train to use the new alignment was the California Zephyr
, on July 16.
Debates ensued over the fate of the Marysvale branch line. The mines at the end of the line had long closed; the last train to traverse the entire length of the line passed through in 1970. Still, farmers and industry in the Sevier and Sanpete Valleys had generated enough traffic that the line broke even most years. However, this line was severely damaged, with several washed-out bridges and railroad tracks draping over the sides of newly created cliffs. The railroad determined that at best it would take years to recover the cost of rebuilding the line.
The residents of Richfield
pressured the Rio Grande to use the portion of the line that was still intact and build a connection to an existing Union Pacific line near Nephi
, roughly parallel to State Route 28
. However, the railroad determined with land acquisition, the cost would be comparable to rebuilding the old route. In addition, the Rio Grande would have to pay trackage rights
to the Union Pacific for the connection from Nephi, which would further erode profits on a line that was barely profitable. In the end, the Rio Grande sold the line to a scrap dealer who dismantled it. A 2002 study placed the cost of rebuilding the modified routing of the Marysvale branch line at $80 million (equivalent to $ million in ).
. The pending completion of the again rebuilt US-6, with properly laid asphalt and stable rock cuts, was announced in November 1984, 18 months after the closure of the original alignment. Starting in 1993, the Utah Department of Transportation began discussions with former Thistle residents to build a memorial to the town. The department maintains a view area overlooking the townsite along US-6.
known as the Charleston–Nebo thrust plate. The rock in this plate dates from the Permian
and Pennsylvanian
to the Jurasic eras, but the plate appears to have formed elsewhere and moved to the modern Thistle area during the Late Cretaceous
era. The layers of soil above the bedrock are younger, dating to the Cretaceous
and Tertiary
eras. The soil in the landslide itself comes from the North Horn
and Ankareh Formations.
The area around Thistle has always been prone to landslides. Pre-historic landslides created the more gentle slopes that made the area usable as a transportation corridor across the Wasatch Mountains. Minor landslides have been frequently observed, and continue to occur. The largest recorded landslides are the 1983 slide which destroyed the town, and a smaller one in 1998.
The climate at downstream Spanish Fork is classified as arid with four distinct seasons. Temperatures range from an average high of 92 °F (33.3 °C) in July and an average low of 20 °F (-6.7 °C) in January. Except for the spring months, precipitation averages less than 2 inches (5.1 cm) per month.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
in Utah County
Utah County, Utah
Utah County is a county located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of 2000, the population was 368,536 and by 2008 was estimated at 530,837. It was named for the Spanish name for the Ute Indians. The county seat and largest city is Provo...
, Utah, United States, about 65 miles (104.6 km) southeast of Salt Lake City. During the era of steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s, the town's primary industry was servicing trains for the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge line running south from Denver, Colorado in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental...
(often shortened to D&RG, D&RGW or Rio Grande). The fortunes of the town were closely linked with those of the railroad until the changeover to diesel locomotives, when the town started to decline.
In April 1983, a massive landslide (known as a slump) dammed the Spanish Fork River. The residents were evacuated as nearly 65000 acre.ft of water backed up, flooding the town. Thistle was almost completely destroyed; only a few structures were left partially standing. Federal and state government agencies have claimed this was the most costly landslide in United States history, the economic consequences of which affected the entire region. The landslide resulted in the first presidentially declared disaster area
Disaster area
A disaster area is a region or a locale heavily damaged by either natural hazards, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, technological hazards including nuclear and radiation accidents, or sociological hazards like riots, terrorism or war. The population living there often...
in the state of Utah.
U.S. Route 6 (US-6), US-89 and the railroad (now part of Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
's Central Corridor
Central Corridor (Union Pacific Railroad)
The Central Corridor is a rail line operated by the Union Pacific Railroad from near Winnemucca, Nevada to Denver, Colorado in the western United States. The line is in use for freight, and provides the route of the California Zephyr. The BNSF Railway has trackage rights on the entire line. The...
) were closed for several months, until they were rebuilt on a higher alignment overlooking the area. The remains of Thistle are visible from a rest area
Rest area
A rest area, travel plaza, rest stop, or service area is a public facility, located next to a large thoroughfare such as a highway, expressway, or freeway at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting on to secondary roads...
along US-6 or from the California Zephyr
California Zephyr
The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
passenger train.
Geography
Thistle is about 65 miles (104.6 km) southeast of Salt Lake City, at the confluence of the two primary tributaries to the Spanish Fork River, Thistle Creek and Soldier Creek. This confluence, at an elevation of 5043 feet (1,537.1 m), is also the junction of two naturally formed routes across the mountains of central Utah. The primary route crosses the Wasatch Mountains, via the Wasatch Plateau and Soldier Summit. This route was carved by the tributaries of the Price RiverPrice River
The Price River is a river in the state of Utah, in the United States. The river originates in the Wasatch Plateau in central Utah and flows southeastward through Price Canyon, alongside U.S. Route 6, to the cities of Helper and Price...
on the eastern side of the mountains and the Spanish Fork River on the west. In addition, Thistle Creek provides a route south from Thistle towards the communities of the Sanpete and Sevier Valleys. The Spanish Fork River flows northwest from Thistle, towards the city of Spanish Fork
Spanish Fork, Utah
Spanish Fork is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 31,497 as of the 2008 census estimate.-History:Spanish Fork was settled by LDS pioneers in 1851...
, before reaching Utah Lake
Utah Lake
Utah Lake is a freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Utah. On the western side of Utah Valley, the lake is overlooked by Mount Timpanogos and Mount Nebo. The lake's only river outlet, the Jordan River, is a tributary of the Great Salt Lake and is highly regulated with pumps. Evaporation accounts...
.
These natural paths have provided the route of several transcontinental trails, highways and railroads since their discovery. The named transportation arteries passing through Thistle include: US-6 (originally numbered US-50), US-89, the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge line running south from Denver, Colorado in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental...
's Utah Division
Utah Division (D&RGW)
The Utah Division of the former Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad is a rail line that connects Grand Junction, Colorado and Salt Lake City, Utah in the Western United States. It is now incorporated into the Union Pacific Railroad system as its Green River and Provo Subdivisions, forming a...
(now part of Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
's Central Corridor
Central Corridor (Union Pacific Railroad)
The Central Corridor is a rail line operated by the Union Pacific Railroad from near Winnemucca, Nevada to Denver, Colorado in the western United States. The line is in use for freight, and provides the route of the California Zephyr. The BNSF Railway has trackage rights on the entire line. The...
) and D&RGW's Marysvale branch line (abandoned because of the landslide).
History
The trade route on which Thistle lies was used by Native AmericanIndigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
tribes before the arrival of European settlers; two Ute Indian chiefs, Taby and Peteetneet, led seasonal migrations through the canyon each spring and fall. The first recorded journey by Europeans to modern Thistle was the Dominguez–Escalante Expedition, which was escorted through the territory by American Indian guides. A small group of Utes inhabiting the canyon frequently clashed with newcomers, and as a result were forcibly relocated in the 1870s.
Most of Thistle's residents were railroad employees sent to live in the town, but there were some who had settled before the railroads arrived. The first Europeans were part of the Mormon migration to Utah, and the first of these was the Pace family, who migrated from Nauvoo, Illinois
Nauvoo, Illinois
Nauvoo is a small city in Hancock County, Illinois, United States. Although the population was just 1,063 at the 2000 census, and despite being difficult to reach due to its location in a remote corner of Illinois, Nauvoo attracts large numbers of visitors for its historic importance and its...
, reaching Thistle in 1848. Fifth-generation descendants of the Pace settlers continued to operate a family-owned cattle ranch until the town was evacuated. Other settlers included Mormons who originally settled elsewhere in Utah but subsequently arrived to homestead
Homestead principle
The homestead principle in law is the concept that one can gain ownership of a natural thing that currently has no owner by using it or building something out of it...
fertile ground on Billies Mountain, on the north wall of the canyon. Among them was the mountain's presumed namesake, William Johnson. Homesteading was practiced in Thistle until the early 1900s. Until the arrival of the railroads the town's economy was based mainly on farming and ranching, although there was also some mining activity in the region, including a vein of asphaltum that was mined between 1892 and 1914.
Railroads
The first railroad track laid through Thistle was a narrow-gaugeNarrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
spur line servicing coal mines near today's Scofield Reservoir
Scofield Reservoir
Scofield Reservoir is a reservoir in Carbon County, Utah, United States. Located on the Price River, a tributary of the Green River, Scofield Reservoir is adjacent to northernmost boundary of the Manti-La Sal National Forest. The reservoir sits at an elevation of , on the northern edge of the...
, built in 1878 by the Utah and Pleasant Valley Railway. By 1890, the Denver and Rio Grande Western, which acquired the line in a foreclosure sale in 1882, had rebuilt the line to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
. The D&RGW connected this line with one they had built west from Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, completing a link from Salt Lake City to Denver.
The railroad built several facilities in Thistle to service and prepare trains for the change in grade and curvature of the line. The railroad placed helper engines on eastbound trains at Thistle for the ascent to Soldier Summit. The town provided a meal service for the trains until the use of on-board dining car
Dining car
A dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
s eliminated the need for meal stops.
Thistle saw more rail traffic with the construction of the Marysvale branch line. This line branched from the main at Thistle, following modern US-89 towards mines near Marysvale
Marysvale, Utah
Marysvale is a town in Piute County, Utah, United States. The population was 381 at the 2000 census. Marysvale is a trail head for the Paiute ATV Trail.-Geography:Marysvale is located at ....
. Another line through Thistle, paralleling the D&RGW main, was built by the Utah Railway
Utah Railway
The Utah Railway is a class III railroad operating in Utah and Colorado, and owned by Genesee & Wyoming Inc.-History:The Utah Railway Company was incorporated on January 24, 1912, with the name of Utah Coal Railway, shortened to Utah Railway in May of the same year...
. The two lines were later combined into a dual-track main line, as part of a trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
agreement between the two companies.
Rail traffic through Thistle continued to increase as the Rio Grande partnered with connecting railroads, making the rail line through Thistle a bridge line
Bridge line
A bridge line or bridge route is a rail carrier tasked primarily with moving traffic from one major carrier to another . Bridge lines often were located between two major cities, connecting rail carriers that served those cities and interchanging their cars...
for transcontinental rail traffic. The growth of Thistle was closely tied to the success of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad throughout the era of steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s.
At its peak, around 1917, Thistle had about 600 residents. The town's railroad infrastructure included a five-stall roundhouse
Roundhouse
A roundhouse is a building used by railroads for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables...
, depot, machine shop, and structures to restock passing trains with sand, coal and water. Non-railroad infrastructure included general stores, a post office, barber shop, saloon, pool hall, bakeries and restaurants. The largest building was a two-story schoolhouse, built in 1911.
In the 1950s, the Denver & Rio Grande Western began to phase out steam locomotives in favor of diesel locomotive
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
s. With the change in technology, Thistle faded in importance. Gradually the town shrank in population; the passenger depot was torn down in 1972 and the post office closed in 1974. By 1983, only a few families remained in Thistle.
Landslide
By April 1983, track deformation was a serious issue. On April 13, the division trackmaster flew to Denver to explain the situation at a specially-called staff meeting. That same day, a Utah Highway Patrol
Utah Highway Patrol
The Utah Highway Patrol is the functional equivalent of the state police for Utah. Its sworn members, known as Troopers are certified law enforcement officers and have statewide jurisdiction...
officer struck a newly created buckle in the highway that threw him against the roof of his vehicle. By the end of the day, a full maintenance crew was struggling to keep US-6 open. All trains were limited to speeds less than 10 miles per hour (4.5 m/s), and were accompanied by maintenance personnel who had to continually work to keep the tracks in-line. The last train to pass through downtown Thistle was the westbound Rio Grande Zephyr
Rio Grande Zephyr
The Rio Grande Zephyr was a passenger train operated by Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad between Denver, Colorado and Ogden, Utah in the Western United States. It operated from 1970 until 1983...
, on April 14, 1983 at about 8:30 p.m. That evening, both US-6 and the rail line were closed. One westbound freight train that had already left Denver was turned back. All through trains between Denver and Salt Lake City were rerouted to Union Pacific Railroad's Overland Route
Overland Route (Union Pacific Railroad)
The Overland Route was a train route operated jointly by the Union Pacific Railroad and the Central Pacific Railroad / Southern Pacific Railroad, between Council Bluffs, Iowa / Omaha, Nebraska, and San Francisco, California over the grade of the First Transcontinental Railroad which had been...
through Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. By April 16, the tracks were completely buried.
On April 17, a final attempt to keep the landslide from blocking the flow of the river failed. That day, the Utah Department of Transportation
Utah Department of Transportation
The Utah Department of Transportation is an agency of the state government for the U.S. state of Utah. The agency is usually referred to by its initials UDOT . UDOT is charged with maintaining the network of state highways in Utah. The agency is headquartered in the Calvin L. Rampton state office...
and the Rio Grande announced plans to abandon the existing transportation arteries and build new corridors. Both the highway and railroad would be re-routed by blasting a path scaling the north wall of Spanish Fork Canyon. The new arteries would pass the slide by dynamiting through Billies Mountain, also along the north canyon wall. Concerned the dam could fail, the state of Utah eventually decided to build a tunnel to re-route the flow of the Spanish Fork River. Engineers estimated the dam created by the toe of the landslide would eventually reach between 200 feet (61 m) and 300 feet (91.4 m) tall. A mandatory evacuation order was issued for the town of Thistle. Volunteers transported as many people and belongings as possible to the small town of Birdseye
Birdseye, Utah
Birdseye is an unincorporated community in southeastern Utah County, Utah located on the back of the Wasatch Range along U.S. Highway 89.Birdseye was settled in 1885 and originally named "Summit Basin" and later "Clinton". The present name "Birdseye" was chosen because of the nearby birdseye marble...
, about 5 miles (8 km) south. Most residents were able to recover only a fraction of their belongings; some had less than two hours notice before the water reached their house. Thistle's oldest resident celebrated her 90th birthday at the evacuation center in Birdseye. By the 18th, the waterline had reached the rooftops of the 22 previously occupied houses. By the 19th, an entire mountain was moving at about 2 foot (0.6096 m) per hour and US-6 was buried by 50 feet (15.2 m) of soil.
Governor Scott Matheson requested federal aid to deal with the situation. After a visit to the area by the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...
, U.S. president Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
issued the first presidential disaster area
Disaster area
A disaster area is a region or a locale heavily damaged by either natural hazards, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, technological hazards including nuclear and radiation accidents, or sociological hazards like riots, terrorism or war. The population living there often...
declaration for the state of Utah. The landslide eventually formed a dam that created a lake 3 miles (5 km) long and over 200 feet (61 m) deep. The residents of downstream Spanish Fork
Spanish Fork, Utah
Spanish Fork is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 31,497 as of the 2008 census estimate.-History:Spanish Fork was settled by LDS pioneers in 1851...
were told to be prepared to evacuate. Engineers estimated that if the dam failed, they would have 30 to 45 minutes notice before the water reached the city.
Aftermath
Thistle was almost completely destroyed. Most wooden buildings were carried away in the floodwaters. The state installed a temporary pumping station to prevent the lake from overflowing the dam; patrol boats skimmed up the floating remains of the town to prevent the debris from blocking the pumps. Most remains were either naturally deposited or placed on the eastern shore of the lake.By autumn, the tunnels to restore the flow of the river and drain the lake were operational. Shortly after, debates between former residents, neighboring residents and government agencies began on what to do with the dam created by the landslide; some wanted make the lake permanent. A study commissioned by the state engineer, to determine if the landslide dam could be used to retain water, recommended to build a new dam upstream from the landslide, rather than attempt engineering work on the landslide dam.
In the years following, the former residents of Thistle filed various lawsuits to recover their losses. In one, they claimed that their property was taken to rebuild the road and railroad without just compensation. Another lawsuit claimed negligence on the part of the D&RGW. The residents argued the railroad's maintenance workers knew the ground was unstable; however, they only repaired the track. The residents contended the slide could have been prevented by using a water drainage system to relieve pressure at the head of the unstable area. They further contended that such a system could have been put in place had the railroad thoroughly investigated the problem upon first noticing it. The engineering firm employed by the Rio Grande claimed their studies indicated the crown of the landslide was about 300 feet (91.4 m) above the level of the tracks, and did not know the true size of the unstable area until the slide was in motion. A jury absolved the D&RGW of responsibility. The plaintiffs appealed the decision, and a second trial in 1993 resulted in a $1.1 million award for the landowners (equivalent to $ million in ). The D&RGW filed suit against the Utah Railway over sharing the costs from the landslide. The Utah Railway has an ownership interest in the line, resulting from an older track sharing agreement.
Economic effects
The landslide closed the main railroad for three months, and U.S. Route 6 and U.S. Route 89 for eight months, during which time the communities of eastern and southeastern Utah were cut off from the rest of the state. Security for the isolated part of Utah County was temporarily assigned to the Utah Highway PatrolUtah Highway Patrol
The Utah Highway Patrol is the functional equivalent of the state police for Utah. Its sworn members, known as Troopers are certified law enforcement officers and have statewide jurisdiction...
.
The economic effects of the closure of these transportation arteries were felt throughout the western United States and devastated rural Utah. The operations of coal mines, uranium mines, turkey farms, animal feed companies, gypsum
Gypsum
Gypsum is a very soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate dihydrate, with the chemical formula CaSO4·2H2O. It is found in alabaster, a decorative stone used in Ancient Egypt. It is the second softest mineral on the Mohs Hardness Scale...
mines, and cement and clay factories were severely impacted. At least two trucking firms and one oil-producing firm suspended or ceased operations. Southeastern Utah's tourism industry suffered without access for visitors from the north and west. Some people who lived and worked on opposite sides of the landslide area suddenly had commutes exceeding 100 miles (160.9 km). The highway patrol temporarily closed a weigh station
Weigh station
A weigh station is a checkpoint along a highway to inspect vehicular weights. Usually, trucks and commercial vehicles are subject to the inspection....
at Peerless (a location along the US-6 corridor near Helper
Helper, Utah
Helper is a city in Carbon County, Utah, United States about 120 miles southeast of Salt Lake City and northwest of the city of Price. It is also known as the "Hub of Carbon County". The population was 2,025 at the 2000 census....
) and built a temporary weigh station near Salina
Salina, Utah
Salina is a city in Sevier County, Utah, United States. The population was 2,393 at the 2000 census.-History:The first permanent settlers moved into the area in 1864 at the direction of leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
(along I-70 about 90 miles (144.8 km) south of Thistle), which saw a sudden increase in truck traffic. The highway patrol estimates the temporary facilities inspected 57,000 trucks and made 80 arrests.
The direct cost of the landslide was estimated at $200 million (equivalent to $ million in ). However, some estimates of the total cost reached as high as $400 million (equivalent to $ million in ). The D&RGW estimated the slide cost them $80 million in lost revenue (equivalent to $ million in ), averaging $1 million per day the tracks were out-of-service. This figure included $19 million in payments to the Union Pacific for the use of their lines. The United States Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
and the state of Utah have called the Thistle landslide the most costly ever in the United States.
Railroad
To expedite construction, the railroad had crews in Utah focused on grading the new path and boring a 3000 feet (914.4 m) tunnel, while crews in Colorado built track segments that were transported to site. On July 4, 1983, at 3:05 p.m., safety inspectors declared the line ready for operation. At 3:12 p.m., the centralized traffic controlCentralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control is a form of railway signalling that originated in North America and centralizes train routing decisions that were previously carried out by local signal operators or the train crews themselves. The system consists of a centralized train dispatcher's office that...
signals gave a green light to the first train to pass through the Thistle area since the slide began, an eastbound freight train coming from the Southern Pacific Railroad
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
at Ogden
Ogden, Utah
Ogden is a city in Weber County, Utah, United States. Ogden serves as the county seat of Weber County. The population was 82,825 according to the 2010 Census. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a...
, destined for Herington, Kansas
Herington, Kansas
Herington is a city in Dickinson and Morris counties in the U.S. state of Kansas. Named after its founder, Monroe Davis Herington. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 2,526.-19th century:...
. Although the line's re-opening on Independence Day
Independence Day (United States)
Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain...
was coincidental, the first train became part of the local holiday celebrations. The first passenger train to use the new alignment was the California Zephyr
California Zephyr
The California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
, on July 16.
Debates ensued over the fate of the Marysvale branch line. The mines at the end of the line had long closed; the last train to traverse the entire length of the line passed through in 1970. Still, farmers and industry in the Sevier and Sanpete Valleys had generated enough traffic that the line broke even most years. However, this line was severely damaged, with several washed-out bridges and railroad tracks draping over the sides of newly created cliffs. The railroad determined that at best it would take years to recover the cost of rebuilding the line.
The residents of Richfield
Richfield, Utah
Richfield is a city in and the county seat of Sevier County, Utah, in the United States, and is the largest city in southern-central Utah. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,551. It lies in the Mormon Corridor, just off of Interstate 70 about 40 miles east of its junction with...
pressured the Rio Grande to use the portion of the line that was still intact and build a connection to an existing Union Pacific line near Nephi
Nephi, Utah
Nephi is a city in Juab County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Provo–Orem, Utah Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,733 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Juab County. It was settled by Mormon pioneers in 1851, and is the principal city in Juab Valley, an...
, roughly parallel to State Route 28
Utah State Route 28
State Route 28 is a state highway in central Utah running for in Sanpete and Juab Counties from Gunnison to Nephi. It serves as a connection from the Wasatch Front to the Sevier Valley.-Route description:...
. However, the railroad determined with land acquisition, the cost would be comparable to rebuilding the old route. In addition, the Rio Grande would have to pay trackage rights
Trackage rights
Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....
to the Union Pacific for the connection from Nephi, which would further erode profits on a line that was barely profitable. In the end, the Rio Grande sold the line to a scrap dealer who dismantled it. A 2002 study placed the cost of rebuilding the modified routing of the Marysvale branch line at $80 million (equivalent to $ million in ).
Highways
The new alignment of US-6 was opened on December 30, 1983. The dedication was planned for the next day, but lines of cars formed at the barricades as soon as news broke that the highway was complete. Some were residents anxious to see the area or visit relatives they had not seen since the slide; others were truckers frustrated by the long detours. The highway patrol requested the ceremony be canceled and the highway opened early, as they were unable to disperse the crowds. When the first traffic flowed crews had not finished some final tasks, such as painting stripes. Motorists saw a relocation with several mountain cuts built high up the canyon wall, with a view of the slide and former lake. The roadbed was not expected to last, due to the uncooperative weather when the asphalt was laid. Two mountain cuts were unstable, requiring several months of work before they could be left unattended. During this time, the state stationed two full-time watches at the cuts, who would close the road while falling rocks were cleared. The cut through Billies Mountain was described by the construction crews as a new, man-made mountain passMountain pass
A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...
. The pending completion of the again rebuilt US-6, with properly laid asphalt and stable rock cuts, was announced in November 1984, 18 months after the closure of the original alignment. Starting in 1993, the Utah Department of Transportation began discussions with former Thistle residents to build a memorial to the town. The department maintains a view area overlooking the townsite along US-6.
Geology and climate
The landslide area near Thistle is a paleovalley formed in a depression in an area of bedrockBedrock
In stratigraphy, bedrock is the native consolidated rock underlying the surface of a terrestrial planet, usually the Earth. Above the bedrock is usually an area of broken and weathered unconsolidated rock in the basal subsoil...
known as the Charleston–Nebo thrust plate. The rock in this plate dates from the Permian
Permian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
and Pennsylvanian
Pennsylvanian
The Pennsylvanian is, in the ICS geologic timescale, the younger of two subperiods of the Carboniferous Period. It lasted from roughly . As with most other geochronologic units, the rock beds that define the Pennsylvanian are well identified, but the exact date of the start and end are uncertain...
to the Jurasic eras, but the plate appears to have formed elsewhere and moved to the modern Thistle area during the Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous
The Late Cretaceous is the younger of two epochs into which the Cretaceous period is divided in the geologic timescale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous series...
era. The layers of soil above the bedrock are younger, dating to the Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
and Tertiary
Tertiary
The Tertiary is a deprecated term for a geologic period 65 million to 2.6 million years ago. The Tertiary covered the time span between the superseded Secondary period and the Quaternary...
eras. The soil in the landslide itself comes from the North Horn
North Horn Formation
The North Horn Formation is a geological formation in Utah whose strata date back to the Late Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Vertebrate paleofauna:...
and Ankareh Formations.
The area around Thistle has always been prone to landslides. Pre-historic landslides created the more gentle slopes that made the area usable as a transportation corridor across the Wasatch Mountains. Minor landslides have been frequently observed, and continue to occur. The largest recorded landslides are the 1983 slide which destroyed the town, and a smaller one in 1998.
The climate at downstream Spanish Fork is classified as arid with four distinct seasons. Temperatures range from an average high of 92 °F (33.3 °C) in July and an average low of 20 °F (-6.7 °C) in January. Except for the spring months, precipitation averages less than 2 inches (5.1 cm) per month.
See also
- Other effects of the 1983 flooding
- Utah Flood of 1983
- Colorado River Floods of 1983
- Great Salt Lake#West Desert pumping project – engineering effort to mitigate the flooding
- Other towns established by the railroad to service or aid trains over the grade of the Wasatch Plateau
- Mill Fork, Utah
- Tucker, UtahTucker, UtahTucker is a ghost town located in Utah County, Utah, below Soldier Summit on U.S. Route 6 through Spanish Fork Canyon. It was once an important loading point and construction camp on the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. After the town was abandoned, the state of Utah used the town site for...
- Colton, UtahColton, Utah-External links:* at GhostTowns.com* at Legends of America...
- Soldier Summit, UtahSoldier Summit, UtahSoldier Summit is the name of both a mountain pass in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah and a ghost town located at the pass. Soldier Summit has been an important transportation route between the Wasatch Front and Price, Utah since the area was settled by the Mormon pioneers. It is on the route of both...
- Helper, UtahHelper, UtahHelper is a city in Carbon County, Utah, United States about 120 miles southeast of Salt Lake City and northwest of the city of Price. It is also known as the "Hub of Carbon County". The population was 2,025 at the 2000 census....
Works cited
-
External links
- Landslide images from the United States Geological SurveyUnited States Geological SurveyThe United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
- Historic U.S. Highways at Thistle by Dale Sanderson
- Thistle from ghosttowns.com
- Dam safety information from Utah Division of Water Rights
- Landslide images from the United States Geological Survey