The Silverton Railroad is remembered for the innovative solutions to difficult engineering problems presented by the steep, mountainous terrain which were devised by the railroad's chief locating engineer, Charles Wingate Gibbs – the Chattanooga Loop, the depot in a wye at Red Mountain, and a covered turntable on the main track at Corkscrew Gulch – and for the unusual and expensive annual passes presented by the owner, Otto Mears.

Construction of the line began in 1887 and reached Burro Bridge by early November, when work was halted for the winter.

[3] The line reached its greatest extent in September 1889 with the completion from Ironton of a spur to a mill at Albany.

[1] A line was proposed to connect Ironton with Ouray in 1892 which would have been electric-powered and used a rack-and-pinion system to overcome the steep grades of 7%, but the Silver Crash of 1893 prevented further construction.

The railroad struggled through market and weather difficulties, was ordered into receivership in 1898 and was sold under foreclosure in 1904.