Katy Trail - Lake Creek Bridge

In 1872, the Tebo and Neosho Railroad Company (T&N) constructed 72 miles of new railroad line, extending from Sedalia, Missouri to Moberly, Missouri.  The new line crossed the Missouri River at Boonville, using an impressive iron bridge.  The T&N would be acquired by the Missouri, Kansas & Texas Railway (MKT) in 1873.  By the late 1880s, the MKT desired to enter the St. Louis area, and the Cleveland, St. Louis & Kansas City Railway began construction on 162 miles of new railroad, extending from New Franklin, Missouri to St. Charles/Machens, Missouri in 1890.  The railroad would be completed by the Missouri, Kansas & Eastern Railway in 1893, and the railroad merged into the MKT in 1896.  In 1899, the Missouri Midland Railway would complete a 13-mile branch line, extending from the mainline at McBaine, Missouri to Columbia, Missouri.  The branch line was sold to the MKT in 1901. This railroad formed the eastern portion of the principal mainline for the MKT, connecting St. Louis to the MKT system which had greatly expanded into Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas during the 1880s.  In 1923, the MKT reorganized as the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad.  In 1975, the line between Fayette and Moberly would be abandoned, and the New Franklin to Fayette segment would be abandoned in 1978.  The Columbia line would be abandoned in 1980, and converted to a trail in 1982.  Due to the proximity to the Missouri River, the line was prone to washouts.  A severe flood in 1986 damaged the line, and it was decided to not repair the line.  In 1988, the MKT was merged into Union Pacific Railroad (UP), and UP would donate the line to Missouri State Parks.  The line was then converted to trail use, opening between Machens and Sedalia in 1993.  Today, the Machens to Sedalia segment is part of the Katy Trail, while the Columbia branch is known as the MKT Nature Trail.