This line served as a secondary connection between the United States and the Canadian border, becoming part of the Great Northern Railway in 1889. In 1906, the line was extended north to Portage La Prairie. By 1907, the StPM&M was fully consumed by the Great Northern.
The Canadian segment of the line was removed in 1929, dead ending the route at Gretna. The Great Northern built a significant amount of branch lines throughout northern Minnesota and North Dakota, many of which were branch lines that served small farming communities.
In 1970, GN merged with rival Northern Pacific to form Burlington Northern Railroad. By 1977, the International Border crossing was closed, cutting back the line to Neche, North Dakota; just south of the Canadian Border.
Because the many branch lines in this area were often parallel to one another, BN removed more of this line in 1994, cutting it back to Glasston. In 1996, BN merged with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway to form BNSF Railway.
In 2006, BNSF leased the line from Grafton to Glasston to Dakota Northern Railroad. Unfortunately, the line was closed to traffic between Grafton and Glasston in 2009 after an unsafe bridge was found. This segment is still owned by BNSF and is used for car storage.
Between Grand Forks and Grafton, BNSF still operates the line, known as the Glasston Subdivision.
06/26/21
Located along US Highway 81 south of Ardoch, this deck girder bridge crosses one of several unnamed inlets to Lake Ardoch.
While a plaque on the main span indicates it was built 1902, there is no record of it existing at this location in 1918. No records have currently been found when it was moved here, although further research is being conducted.
The Great Northern often moved spans around to save costs. It appears that both the girder and the steel stringer span may have been moved here.
Currently, the bridge consists of this deck girder span, with a steel stringer span on the south side and a number of concrete modular spans on each side.
Originally built with timber substructures and trestle approaches, the south approach was rebuilt in 2008, while the north approach was rebuilt in 2018. The entire bridge currently sits on steel substructures.
This style bridge was commonly used to replace older trestles, as girder bridges such as this were easy to construct and maintain.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition, with no major deterioration noted.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.