At St. Cloud, it connected to an existing mainline towards Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
The line would be sold to the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Manitoba Railway in 1883, who began their empire in Minnesota.
At the same time, the Eastern Railway Company of Minnesota continued from Hinckley and built into Superior, Wisconsin.
In 1890, both these companies would be consolidated into the Great Northern Railroad, a significant system in the northern states.
However, the portion from St. Cloud to Hinckley would become a major way to get goods to the Twin Ports from South Dakota and Iowa.
In 1970, the Great Northern merged with rival Northern Pacific and Chicago, Burlington & Quincy to form Burlington Northern.
In 1983, Burlington Northern abandoned a 45 mile section of track. Most of this road bed was sold to private owners, except for a section near Milaca.
In 1996, the Burlington Northern merged with Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway to form BNSF Railway, who sold a portion from Brook Park to Mora to the St. Croix Valley Railroad.
In 2003, the Brook Park to Mora section was abandoned because of unsafe conditions at the Mud Creek Bridge near Quamba.
Today, the short stubs that remain include the Hinckley to Brook Park section, as well as a short section owned by Northern Lines in St. Cloud.
06/26/21
This bridge is one of the most recognized structures in the region of Minnesota. While I was photographing it, two separate people showed up to document its beauty.
Built in 1892, the bridge crosses the Little Groundhouse River. This massive stone arch features smooth cut stone, large wing walls and an overwhelming size.
In addition, the bridge is listed as being 40 feet long, possibly the largest single span stone arch in Minnesota.
Unfortunately, Kanabec County turned down to acquire the railroad upon abandonment, and it turned over to local landowners. Fortunately, the bridge can easily be seen and documented from state right of way.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in near perfect condition. On the south face, virtually no deterioration could be found.
The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the large scale size and perfect historic integrity.
The photo above is an overview.