Located in the town of Ortonville, this large is the first railroad crossing of the Minnesota River.
Built in 1913-1914 as the original line was bypassed and replaced by a new double track route, the bridge consists of three deck girder spans, set onto concrete substructures. The bridge also features a ballasted deck, as well as parapet style abutments, typically used to stabilize the slopes at the end of the bridge.
Originally, the bridge featured two tracks. The second track was still visible and in use as seen in aerial photos from 1955. It appears to have been removed prior to 1971. When the second track was removed, the girders were also removed, and may have been reused at another location.
Additional alterations to the bridge appear to include the ballasted deck. It was likely originally of concrete modular channel design, but was probably replaced with the wood one around the same time as the second track was removed.
Construction on this segment of line appears to have been rather complex. Temporary tracks and trestles were built to move material, then the large fill was built. Once the fill was in place, the railroad then began building the bridge using steam shovels and concrete chutes from temporary trestles.
A photo of the temporary trestle used to build this line can be seen here. A photo showing the construction of this bridge can be seen at the end of the photo series above.
Nearly 300 miles of double tracking, realignment and reconstruction of this mainline took place over three years. Similarly, the Milwaukee Road mainline across Iowa was rebuilt in a similar fashion at the same time. The author is amazed how much work went into reconstructing this route that quickly.
The original Minnesota River crossing was near the dead end of Mill Road, and stood until the 1990s. That bridge consisted of timber piles. It has since been replaced with a modular pedestrian bridge.
The Minnesota River rises just north of this bridge, at the outlet of Big Stone Lake. It then flows southeast until it reaches Mankato, before turning back northeast and flowing towards the Twin Cities.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition, with little serious damage noted.
The author has ranked the bridge as being moderately significant, due to the larger design and lack of other significant bridges in the area.
The photo above is an overview of the bridge, looking west.
| Upstream | Headwaters at Big Stone Lake |
| Downstream | Marsh Lake Railroad Bridge |