Golden Spike Cultural Landscape Report

A. HQ/summit area

1. The Golden Spike Association did a very limited "reconstruction" of the Last Spike scene during the 1950s — probably after 1957 when the area became an Historic Site not in Federal ownership. This consisted of installing some telegraph poles and laying several lengths of track on the 1942 mainline at what was believed to be the Last Spike site.

2. The NPS's 1968-1969 reconstruction following Ketterson's 1969 base map. This included reconstructing the UP siding grade; laying track on the siding and 1942 mainline, erecting the UP and CP-style telegraph poles. Erecting the various tents and other features on his base map was actually done sometime in the 1970s.

3. The NPS's 1979 reconstruction, which corrected the UP siding alignment errors in Ketterson's map, and upgraded the 1942 mainline and the UP wye (which was not previously used) to industry standard for supporting the two steam locomotives. The telegraph poles were kept, but the tents removed and replaced with the beginnings of a "false front" town, such as sprung up at Promontory Summit after May 10, 1869. Interpretation of the Last Spike site at this time included some living history activities, including baking bread and cookies in one of the establishments:

4. Archeological test excavations by LeFevre in 1974.

5. Archeological Inventory and documentation by Ayers in the early 1 980s (report dates 1982).

6. In 1999 the "false fronts" were removed anticipatory to creating a partial reconstruction of the May 10, 1968 Last Spike scene to the extent possible given the other historic resources and modern structures in the area.

B. Grades

1. From the 1970s on there has been sporadic maintenance of historic grade, mainly by "pulling the shoulders," as the route gradually deteriorates through vehicular and foot traffic.

2. In the late 1990's a several year effort was made to gravel the surface of the entire route (similar to applying new ballast) that was deteriorating through vehicular and foot traffic.

3. Stabilization and/or repair of historic stone culverts began in the 1970s and have continued as needed. However, only in the late 1990s did this effort have benefit of input from a Historical Architect and an archaeologist.

4. Repair/stabilization/reconstruction of historic wood culverts, including the stave culvert. This work, similarly, has been ongoing sporadically since the 1970s, although only recently did this have benefit of input from a Historical Architect and an archaeologist.

5. Stabilization of two historic trestles occurred in 1971 and 1986, based upon a Historic Structures Report prepared by Dave Battle.

6. In 1986 the drainage that was eroding these two historic trestles was diverted back to its original channel with the use of large rock-filled gabions, and a large concrete box culvert was placed in the grade to facilitate drainage. Over the many years of operation of the railroad, this drainage had gradually filled in the historic culverts and diverted its channel to the east, eroding the grade there, and resulting in the Southern Pacific's construction of the two trestles.

7. Rebuilding sections of grade after washouts and addition of non-historic culverts in some places.

8. Major erosion control effort in the 1970s that included support from the Soil Conservation District and emplacement of numerous rock-filled gabions along the walls of several actively eroding drainages.

9. Removal by hand of some dense vegetation, mainly sagebrush and rabbitbrush, along the grade just east of the Surbon area as a "test" to determine if this stopped deterioration of the grade and enhanced its visibility from the county road.

10. Installation of an electric fence and specific stock crossing areas in 1997 to keep livestock off of the historic grade and out of the shady culvert areas.

11. In the later 1990s the grades in the summit area began to be mowed as a routine maintenance activity both to keep down the shrubby vegetation and enhance visibility.

C. East and West Slopes

1. Archeological inventory and condition assessment.

2. Prescription burns in 1998 and 1999 as prescribed in the park's 1998 Wildland Fire Management Plan. Three sections of the grade were burned, along with some additional areas on the east slope, to remove the woody vegetation that was damaging the historic features.

3. In 1968-1969 the NIPS fenced its east slope and summit lands west to the King's Pass area.