CPKC Columbia Parkway Bridge

ln In 1887, the Minneapolis and St. Croix Railway (M&StC) constructed 36 miles of new railroad between Shoreham, Minnesota and the St. Croix River near Osceola, Wisconsin.  The line connected to ongoing Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railway (Soo Line) construction in Wisconsin.  In 1888, 5 additional miles of new railroad would be constructed from Cardigan Junction to Soo Line Junction in St. Paul (near present day Arlington Avenue and Jackson Street).  The M&StC would be purchased by the Soo Line in 1888.  In 1890, a one mile extension would be constructed from the Northern Pacific Railway and Great Northern Railway tracks, across the Mississippi River to Camden Junction.  In 1899, a new spur was built along the west bank of the Mississippi River to reach downtown Minneapolis.  An additional extension would be made to Seventh Street in St. Paul in 1909.  A new cutoff was constructed in 1911 between the Mississippi River Bridge and Central Avenue.  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 1981, the southern mile from Soo Line Junction to Seventh Street would be abandoned.  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 this route.  The Minneapolis to Withrow segment of the line is known as the Withrow Subdivision.