BNSF 9th Street Bridge (Bismarck)

In 1871, the Northern Pacific Railroad (NP) continued on the mainline which was previously constructed from Carlton, Minnesota to Dilworth, Minnesota.  Construction would reach Moorhead by the end of 1871, and the line would be extended across the Red River and to Jamestown, North Dakota in 1872.  The line would reach Bismarck by the end of 1883.  A ferry across the Missouri River to Mandan would be opened in 1879, and construction would be completed to Medora, North Dakota in 1880.  Construction would reach Glendive, Montana by the end of 1881, and a permamnat bridge across the Missouri River would be constructed in 1882.  The NP would be sold to the Northern Pacific Railway in 1896.

The NP operated this route as their principle mainline, connecting the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul to the Pacific Coast at Seattle.  Numerous upgrades would be made to the route in the late 1890s, including various realignments between Mandan and Glendive.  A new high bridge and bypass of Valley City, North Dakota would be completed in 1909.  Later upgrades came in the 1940s, when additional realignments occurred between Mandan and Glendive, including a significant line change near New Salem, North Dakota.  In 1970, NP would merge with rival Great Northern Railway and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy to form Burlington Northern Railroad (BN). In 1996, BN merged with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway to form BNSF Railway. BNSF currently operates the Dilworth to Bismarck segment of this line as the Jamestown Subdivision; and the Mandan to Glendive segment of this line as the Dickinson Subdivision.