- 1884: 104 miles completed from Waterloo to Des Moines, Iowa by the Wisconsin, Iowa and Nebraska Railway
- 1886: WI&N sold to the Chicago, St. Paul & Kansas City Railway
- 1887: 27 miles completed from Oelwein to Waterloo, Iowa by the Chicago, St. Paul & Kansas City Railway
- 1888: 159 miles completed from Des Moines, Iowa to St. Joseph, Missouri by the Chicago, St. Paul & Kansas City Railway
- 1890: 23 miles completed from St. Joseph, Missouri to Beverly, Missouri by the Leavenworth & St. Joseph Railway
- 1892: L&StJ merged into the Chicago, St. Paul & Kansas City Railway, trackage rights obtained over the Union Pacific and Missouri Pacific into Kansas City
- 1893: CStP&KC sold to the Chicago Great Western Railway
- 1909: Chicago Great Western Railway becomes the Chicago Great Western Railroad
- 1968: Chicago Great Western purchased by the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1984: Des Moines to St. Joseph segment abandoned due to acquisition of parallel Rock Island "Spine Line"
- 1985: Bondurant to Marshalltown segment abandoned
- 1985: Cedar Falls to Cedar Falls Junction segment abandoned
- 1986: St. Joseph to Kansas City segment abandoned
- 1989: Marshalltown to Cedar Falls Junction segment abandoned
- 1995: C&NW purchased by Union Pacific Railroad
- 2001: Bell Avenue Industrial Lead in Des Moines abandoned
- 2011: Bondurant Industrial Lead abandoned
- 1987-Present: Chicaqua Valley Trail uses the railroad grade from I-80 north of Des Moines to Baxter
- 1992-Present: Great Western Trail uses the railroad grade from Des Moines to Martensdale
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific leases the Cedar Falls to Oelwein segment to the Iowa Northern Railroad
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific operates small segments of the former route in Des Moines and Kansas City
06/26/21
Located near St. Charles, this large girder bridge crosses Clanton Creek.
Built in approximately 1905, likely to replace an older iron bridge, this structure features four deck girder spans, set onto concrete and stone substructures.
Unfortunately, no date could be found on the bridge. While the majority of the bridge is in good condition, the center pier has been seriously cut into by water, and has a large gash in it.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair condition. It is currently privately owned, and was accessed with permission.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.