The Willmar and Sioux Falls Railway constructed an additional 147 miles between Willmar and Sioux Falls, South Dakota between 1887 and 1888.
The W&SF became part of the Great Northern Railway in 1907. The Great Northern had and was building an expanse of track throughout the northern United States.
In 1970, the Great Northern merged with rival Northern Pacific and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy to form Burlington Northern.
When Burlington Northern was formed, they trimmed excess and parallel routes. As a result, in 1985, 21 miles of railroad between Hawick and Willmar were abandoned. In addition, 19 more miles to Cold Spring would be abandoned in 1988.
In 1996, the BN merged with Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe to form BNSF. The route south of Willmar became a main line, and an additional abandonment of approximately one mile occurred in Cold Spring in 2007.
More recently, three more miles to Rockville were abandoned in 2011.
Today, the route between Rockville and St. Cloud is operated by Northern Lines, while the route between Willmar and Sioux Falls is operated by BNSF as the Marshall Subdivision. The segment between Willmar and Cold Spring is now the Glacial Lakes State Trail, although some portions are not complete.
06/26/21
The BNSF Mississippi River Crossing at St. Cloud is one of the more impressive structures north of the Twin Cities over the Mississippi.
The bridge was first built 1885, later rebuilt in 1892. Today, it remains partially changed.
The bridge contains 4 spans of Pratt Deck Truss, each with 9 panels and pinned connections.
One of these changes is the extra bracing, added in 1922 as trains became heavier.
In addition, pier #5 was encased with cement in 1944. The remaining substructures are made of stone.
The author has ranked the bridge as moderately significant, because of the age and the unique modifications, which add to the historic value of this structure.
The photo above is looking from St. Germain Street
Mississippi River River Railroad Bridges
| Upstream | Soo Line Bridge at Blanchard |
| Downstream | Camden Place Rail Bridge |