Constructed 1882 - 1883
The Stone Arch Bridge was Constructedas a railroad bridge by James
J. Hill and the Minneapolis Union Railway Company.
Designed by Colonel Charles C. Smith, the bridge cut diagonally across
the Mississippi River with a 6' curve at the west end. It was 2,100 feet
long, 76 feet high with 23 arches.
The Bridge was built of 100,000 tons of stone: granite from Sauk
Rapids, Minnesota, and limestone quarried from nearby Mississippi River
Bluffs and from Mankato, Minnesota: Stone City, Iowa: and Bridgeport, Wisconsin.
Construction took twenty two months.
from January 16, 1862 to November 22, 1863
600 men worked day & night, winter & summer
Heavy labor was provided by men and by horses harnessed to windlasses.
Steam Powered pumps removed water during construction of pier foundations.
Trains provided the means to haul the stone from distant quarries.
Three men lost their lives.
1907 - 1910
Arches were reinforced, crown to crown, to carry heavier loads
1925 Tracks were widened and parapet walls cut back to accommodate the
increased size of trains
1948 82 passenger train crossed daily in the heyday of the bridge.
1961 - 1963
St. Anthony Falls Upper Lock, constructed by the US Army Corps of
Engineers, required removal of arches 13 and 14 and pier 14 and installation
of a 200 foot Warren Truss.
1965
Record breaking Spring Floods caused major damage to peir 7 and
arches 6 and 7. Repairs were made by the owner of the bridge. The Great
Northern Railway Company.
1978
The last passenger train crossed the bridge
1989
Hennein County Regional Railroad Authority purchased the bridge
1992
Ownership was transferred to the Minnesota Department of Transportation
