Near Corinne in Box Elder County, Utah — The American Mountains (Southwest)

The Last Cut

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 27, 2014

1. The Last Cut Marker

Inscription. By April of 1869, the Union Pacific was working its Mormon and Irish labor forces day and night in order to meet the scheduled deadline for the completion of the railroad. Below you is the last cut made along the transcontinental route. Cuts such as these were necessary to maintain a smooth and steady grade and to keep within the 2 percent maximum rise (106 feet per mile) mandated by the Pacific Railroad Act of 1862. Atop the cut, notice the excess rock left over from excavation, which is neatly stacked with the largest rocks on the bottom to stabilize the rock pile and to keep debris out of the cut. Excavated materials like these were often used as fill to build up the adjacent grade along the route.

Erected by National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Railroads & Streetcars. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1869.

Location. 41° 37.672′ N, 112° 30.231′ W. Marker is near Corinne, Utah, in Box Elder County. It is on Promontory Trail, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Corinne UT

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84307, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Utah’s Cache Valley

and in the West Desert.

It is also in the American Mountain West

and in Colorado Plateau.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Rocky Mountains,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Chinese Arch (approx. 0.6 miles away); Big Fill Trail (approx. 0.9 miles away); The “Orange Special” Wreck (approx. one mile away); The Big Trestle (approx. 1½ miles away); The Big Fill (approx. 1½ miles away); The Track that United the States (approx. 1.7 miles away); Irish Monument (approx. 2½ miles away); Original Rail (approx. 2½ miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Corinne.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Big Fill Trail (was approx. 0.9 miles away but has been permanently removed).

More about this marker. This marker is at Stop 11 of the the Promontory Trail Driving

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 27, 2014

2. The Last Cut Marker

Tour. Pick up a guidebook at the Golden Spike National Historic Site Visitors Center.

The Last Cut image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 27, 2014

3. The Last Cut

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, August 27, 2014

4. The Last Cut

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on February 21, 2015, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 859 times since then and 32 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on February 21, 2015, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.