By 1876, the route became part of the Davenport and North Western Railway, before becoming part of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway.
The Milwaukee Road had built a significant amount of trackage throughout the midwest, and Iowa in particular.
In 1931, the route was abandoned between DeWitt and Long Grove, and between Long Grove and Eldridge in 1938.
Trackage was continously abandoned through the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s in short segments. One remaining spur to Eldridge survived to the end of the Milwaukee Road, when it was purchased by Soo Line in 1985.
The following year, Soo Line was purchased by Canadian Pacific. CP spun this line off to I&M Rail Link in 1997, and I&M Rail Link became part of the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railway in 2002. IC&E later became part of Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern.
Currently, the remaining spur of line is owned by Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern, a subsidiary of Canadian Pacific.
06/16/22
One of the longest and most unique bridges in Davenport contains a variety of components.
When first built in 1899, the bridge contained the current deck girder span over 11th Street, as well as a pony truss over River Drive.
The bridge can be divided into three segments: the span over 11th Street, the trestle middle and the pony truss spans over River Drive.
In addition, the main pony truss span was a riveted Warren Pony Truss with 6 panels, which was built in 1905. The entire bridge rested on wooden substructures.
However, the pony truss span was replaced in 1984 by a pair of riveted pony truss spans. In addition, several trestle spans were replaced by I-Beam spans.
The new substructures for these spans include concrete pile structures. The pony truss spans are heavily skewed.
Overall, the bridge remains in good condition. However, it likely will not carry train traffic for more than another decade.
The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the unique history of the structure.
The photo above is an overview. The bridge can be accessed from any of the nearby streets.