This massive concrete and girder viaduct crosses Hawk Creek near the Minnesota Falls station.
Built in 1909, this bridge consists of two concrete deck girder spans on each side, with a main deck girder span in the center. The entire bridge sits on concrete abutments, and rises about 60 feet around the surrounding area. While much of the route between Minneapolis and Aberdeen was double tracked, this was one of a few areas that was never double tracked.
Unique to the area, this bridge replaced an older bridge of steel construction. It is likely that this older bridge was a deck truss.
The deck girder span was reportedly from stock, and was likely fabricated between 1907 and 1909. It may have originally been ordered as a span for another bridge.
Concrete deck girders are an oddity for railroad use. Between 1908 and 1912, the Milwaukee Road was transitioning to concrete bridges to replace older pile trestles. Many concrete designs were tried out along the Milwaukee Road, including these type concrete deck girders. Ultimately, slab spans quickly became the favorite and hundreds were constructed.
Overall, this bridge appears to remain in excellent condition. The superstructure and substructures all appear to have very little deterioration.
The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the unique design and large scale design.
The photo above is an overview.