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| Name | CPKC Wild Rice River Bridge |
| Built By | Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad |
| Currently Owned By | Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited |
| Superstructure Contractor | Unknown |
| Length | 185 Feet Total, 40 Foot Main Span |
| Width | 1 Track |
| Height Above Ground | 30 Feet (Estimated) |
| Superstructure Design | Deck Plate Girder and Steel Stringer |
| Substructure Design | Concrete Pile |
| Date Built | c. 1901, approaches built c. 1974 |
| Traffic Count | 5 Trains/Day (Estimated) |
| Current Status | Open to Traffic |
| Significance | Local Significance |
| Documentation Date | 7/24/2016 |
In 1903, the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railway (Soo
Line) constructed a new 59-mile railroad line extending from the existing mainline at Glenwood, Minnesota to Otter Tail, Minnesota. In 1904, an additional 206 miles would be constructed between Otter Tail and Noyes, at the Canadian Border. At Noyes, the route connected to the Canadian Pacific Railway. The Soo Line was a smaller
railroad in the Midwest, with routes
extending through Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and North Dakota, with
subsidiary routes extending to Chicago. It was
operated as a subsidiary of Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). By 1937, the
Soo Line had entered bankruptcy, and it would be
reorganized as the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad
in 1944.
By 1961, the Soo Line would be merged with other CP subsidiaries Duluth,
South Shore & Atlantic Railroad and Wisconsin Central Railroad to
form Soo Line Railroad, a company controlled by CP. In 1984, the Soo
Line would be reorganized as the Soo Line Corporation, and the railroad
would be fully merged into CP in 1990. In 2023, CP would merge with Kansas City Southern Railway to form CPKC, which currently operates the Detroit Lakes Subdivision between Glenwood and Thief River Falls, and the Noyes Subdivision between Thief River Falls and Noyes.
Located in the town of Mahnomen, this deck plate girder bridge crosses the Wild Rice River. Likely built in approximately 1901 when the line was constructed, the bridge features a single 40-foot deck plate girder. In approximately 1974, the bridge was rebuilt with steel stringer approaches, and concrete pile substructures. This design of bridge was commonly used throughout the Soo Line system, as it was durable and easy to construct. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
Citations
| Railroad History Citation | ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele |