- 1854: 39 miles completed from Chicago to Cary, Illinois by the Illinois & Wisconsin Railroad
- 1855: I&W combined with Rock River Valley Union Railroad to form the Chicago, St. Paul and Fond du Lac Railroad
- 1855: 53 miles completed from Cary to Janesville, Wisconsin by the Chicago, St. Paul and Fond du Lac Railroad
- 1859: CStP&FdL sold to Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1882: Second track completed from Chicago to Mayfair (Montrose Avenue)
- 1884: Second track completed from Mayfair to Des Plaines
- 1886: 16 miles completed from Janesville to Evansville, Wisconsin by the Janesville and Evansville Railway
- 1887: J&E sold to the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1893: Second track completed from Des Plaines to Barrington
- 1899: Second track completed from Barrington to west of Harvard, Illinois
- 1899: Second track completed from Shopiere to west of Janesville, Wisconsin
- 1899: Track elevation completed from Kostner Avenue to Sangamon Street in Chicago
- 1908: Second track completed at Rock River in Janesville, Wisconsin
- 1927: Track elevation completed from Kostner Avenue to Foster Avenue in Chicago
- 1995: Chicago & North Western purchased by Union Pacific Railroad
- 1984-Present: Metra operates the Union Pacific Northwest Line between Harvard and Chicago
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific operates the Harvard Subdivision from Chicago to Evansville, Wisconsin
08/19/21
One of the most unique bridges in southern Wisconsin, this massive deck truss bridge crosses the Rock River.
Originally built in 1896 as a single track bridge, the bridge was widened in 1908. Typically, widening steel bridges consisted of adding additional substructures, and adding new spans.
With a large bridge as this, it gets much more complex to widen a bridge. It appears new stone and concrete substructures were added, and a new southbound track constructed. The existing northbound track reused the same substructures, although the new spans were slightly longer to make up for the 1880s vintage parapet abutments.
Currently, the bridge consists of four large riveted Double Intersection Warren Deck Trusses. Parallel but separate spans can be seen for the bridge. These spans, despite being built 12 years apart, are extremely similar. Only minor differences can be noted in the design.
However, the southbound span consists of a deck girder spans on the north end, to balance out the older parapet abutment the northbound span uses. In addition, a through girder span crosses the former Milwaukee Road route. This span was added in 1908, likely to replace a span of similar construction.
The piers for the bridge are all cut ashlar stone, and the appear to have been originally built in 1896, and widened in 1908. The abutments of the bridge are a combination of concrete and stone.
Overall, the bridge appears to remain in good condition. The northbound track has since been removed, and traffic uses only the southbound span now.
Historic photo of the bridge
The author has ranked this bridge as being regionally significant, due to the large scale example of this design.
The photo above is an overview. The bridge can be accessed from US-51, just downstream.
| Upstream | Jeffris Park Trail Bridge |
| Downstream | WSOR Rock River Bridge (S) |
