The settlement of Alvarado had existed for some 25 years when two railroads arrived in the 1879-81 timeframe. The Dallas, Cleburne & Rio Grande Railroad built through Alvarado as part of their narrow gauge line from Dallas to Cleburne, but this was after a reorganization when the originally chartered company could not be financed. According to the Handbook of Texas...
"The Dallas and Cleburne Railroad had been chartered on November 23, 1876, to build a narrow-gauge line between Dallas and Cleburne, but the capital could not be raised and the road was reorganized as the Dallas, Cleburne, and Rio Grande. In 1879 the company built fifty-three miles of narrow-gauge track from Dallas to Cleburne. The company ran a freight and passenger train over the tracks to collect a promised bonus, but service was then abandoned. The right-of-way passed to the Chicago, Texas and Mexican Central Railway Company in 1880."
The line was then acquired by the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe (GC&SF) Railway two years later and converted to standard gauge. Meanwhile, the Missouri - Kansas - Texas Railroad ("the Katy") passed west of Alvarado as they built from Ft. Worth to Hillsboro in 1881. The two rail lines ran parallel for more than a mile before crossing at an oblique angle. Tower 58 was authorized for operation at this location by the Railroad Commission of Texas on November 1, 1904.
