By the winter of 1890, the Colorado Midland Railway had become a passenger and freight hauler. It had been handling local traffic since early in the construction period. Now it was a transcontinental link as well.
The Midland had its share of passenger traffic. In addition to extensive local passenger hauling to and from Leadville, Aspen and Grand Junction as well as the smaller communities served, there was considerable through business. Astute advertising caused summer tourist traffic to quickly become an important item in the Midland's passenger travel picture. Glenwood Springs, with its great hot springs, soon became one of the leading tourist centers on the line. Large numbers of people also visited the mining camps of Leadville and Aspen with transcontinental travelers contributing to revenue via bridge traffic. Two through passenger trains were operated daily with meals served at eating stations situated at Cascade, Arkansas Junction and Basalt.
The Colorado Midland's local freight traffic picture was impressive. One of the largest single classifications was bituminous coal from six mines on the Jerome Park Branch and in the New Castle area, and coke from the ovens at Cardiff. Shipped via Midland gondolas, it was consigned to metal mines at Leadville and Aspen, to smelters at Leadville and Pueblo and many smaller communities both on- and off-line. Considerable non-revenue tonnage was made up of company coal for Midland locomotives.
Coke tonnage was important with slack coal from the Jerome Park Branch hauled to Cardiff and converted to high quality coke. It was then loaded into box cars for shipment to Leadville, Pueblo, and copper smelters in Montana.
Precious and industrial ores from Leadville and Aspen was shipped to smelters at Denver and Pueblo, although some of Leadville's silver-lead was processed locally. Aspen's silver-lead ore was shipped in large volumes to the smelters at Leadville. In addition lime and limestone from Thomasville, and high grade building stone from Peach Blow were also shipped.
Woodland Park served the timber industry of the Manitou Park area, Norrie and Thomasville with much of the lumber production consisting of mining timbers for Leadville, Aspen, and Jerome Park. Livestock was handled through Rifle and Hartsel with important loading points at Florissant, Carbondale, De Beque, New Castle and Spinney. C.M. trains hauled potatoes and other produce out of the Roaring Fork Valley and large hay tonnage from South Park.
The principle inbound commodities included processed foods, furniture, bricks and other building materials, explosives, mining machinery and supplies, farm and ranch supplies and sawmill equipment.
With the Colorado Midland running into Grand Junction, considerable bridge traffic had developed. Westbound bridge tonnage consisted largely of manufactured goods with Eastbound loads mostly of lumber, wheat and some perishables.
This through traffic necessitated additional equipment. In 1889, the Midland purchased six Schenectady 4-6-0's numbered 39 to 44. They also added 201 50,000 pound capacity gondolas and 16 60,000 pound capacity wooded hopper cars built by the St. Charles Car Company. In 1890 four additional 4-6-0s were obtained from Schenectady and numbered 45-48. In addition four baggage cars were obtained from Barney & Smith Car Company and 50 flat cars, 100 wooded flat bottom gondolas and 200 box cars all of 50,000 pound capacity and eight cabooses from the St. Charles Car Company.
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