A little history from the Blackhawk and Central City Railroad
(with a nod and thanks to Robert Spude)
With the great Gregory, Bobtail, and Gunnell lodes about Central City pouring forth their unprecedented gold, capitalists began to make plans for a railroad to connect the mines to the mills along roiling North Clear Creek at Blackhawk. Mill owners - led by Job Kimber, William Fullerton, and Frank Young of the First National Bank of Central City (who had formed a "ring" to control the biggest mills at Blackhawk) - promoted a railroad for their mills, the Blackhawk & Central City Railway & Navigation Company.
Denver and Omaha bankers Luther, Herman, Augustus, and Charles agreed to help back a railroad not just between Blackhawk and Central City, but down Clear Creek and on to Denver. In 1868, Herman (as president) procured funding for the first steps for the Blackhawk and Central City line. The Kountz brothers, through their connections with the Union Pacific Railroad helped charter the railroad and went to New York for capital.
The chartering of the B&CC and it's beginning to survey the Clear Creek route was the impetus for the opposition Colorado Central and Pacific Railroad to begin construction at the start of 1868 (the name quickly changed to the Colorado Central Railroad). With the B&CC acquiring the right of way on the north fork of the Clear Creek down to Forks Creek, the threat of the B&CC acquiring further Clear Creek right of way east of Forks Creek spurred the CCRR to survey and acquire the right-of-way from Golden up to Forks Creek and up the southern branch of the creek to Georgetown and Silver Plume. In a master stroke, The Kountz brothers gained stock control of both charters.
With Kimber, the Kountz brothers met with Jay Gould, soon to become the Wizard of Wall Street, to help finance the lines. This opportunity dovetailed nicely with Gould's plot to corner the nation's gold market. With the mill ring under Kimber and the gold bullion sales through Kountz's banks, Gould locked up all the gold product of Colorado directly to him to feed his schemes in exchange for a promise to build the B&CC and the CCRR. He also, through Kountz, would eventually gain control of the Union Pacific Railroad. In 1869, by controlling the flow of Rocky Mountain gold, and by cornering the gold bullion in New York, Gould and his co-conspirator Big Jim Fisk cornered the gold market and drove the New York City market price up from the government regulated $20 to a phenomenal $162. All who needed gold bullion had to pay Gould's price.
Meanwhile, surveying indicated that both routes made more sense if a 3-foot gauge railroad was used and building of the B&CC began in 1869. The switchback from Blackhawk to Central City as well as the wye in Central City were completed within a couple of months and the line down to Forks Creek completed in 1870. In the meantime, the CCRR was building up the Clear Creek, reaching Forks Creek a few weeks before the B&CC. The two railroads reached an interchange agreement at Forks Creek. Kimber and partners received their railroad and connection and controlled the mine output through their milling monopoly at Blackhawk. An upstart smelter the Boston & Colorado competed and tried to block the monopoly, but limped along because of high rail transport costs - thanks to the Kimber-Kountz-Gould intrique. The gold of the mountains poured into their pockets.
With the B&CC done, the group's CCRR was able to dedicate its capital wholly to building up the south fork, thus reaching Georgetown by 1871. The mines continued to be profitable, but the real flood of wealth went to Kimber, the Kountzs brothers, and especially Gould. The railroad could have been built with golden rails for the profits, and the Kountz banking empire soon stretched to New York City to become one of the nation's biggest. By keeping the market price of gold up, Gould and his partners reaped unconscionable wealth with their gold corner.
But the new president, U. S. Grant, had become concerned and ordered his Secretary of the Treasury to dump U. S. government gold bullion onto the market. This caused the market price to collapse as did the value of the Kimber-Kountz mill, railroad, and bank empire. The mill, railroad and bank empire went into bankruptcy in the Panic of 1873. But Gould had been tipped off by one time Gregory mine owner, Colorado's first U.S. Senator and now Colorado's representative in U. S. Congress, Jerome B Chaffee (as corrupt a character as you can find during the Gilded Age) and was able to unload his gold stockpile at a high price, as well as his Colorado stock portfolio.
The B&CC went bankrupt and was reorganized under the margnially stronger CCRR, now controlled by Loveland and local interests (but with Gould and other UP interests still owning a majority of CCRR stock). Kountz's bank recovered and while the mines of Gilpin County continued their production into the twentieth century, they were never again to play such a pivotal role in the nation's economy. But from 1869-73, it was the scene of high financial manipulations, political intrigue, and scandal of the first order!