This route immediately became a part of the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific. Connecting to St. Paul, Minnesota on the north and Kansas City to the south; the route was known as the Rock Island Spine Line.
Despite the great routing of the line, the Rock Island oftentimes faced financial issues, which led to deferred maintenance of this route.
By the time a judge ordered liquidation of the Rock Island assets, the route was in poor condition. The Chicago & North Western Railway and Soo Line Railroad entered a bidding war to win the Spine Line and its connections to Kansas City.
After the C&NW came out victorious, over a year was spent rebuilding the line to get it back into operating condition. The route opened in 1983, and provided the C&NW with a direct connection to Kansas City.
At Nevada, Iowa; a connection was built to the Clinton Subdivision to allow a connection between major routes. This connection opened up in 1983.
In 1995, the C&NW was purchased by Union Pacific. Today, Union Pacific continues to operate this line as the Mason City Subdivision.
09/09/21
This deck girder bridge crosses high above the Iowa River in Iowa Falls.
Built in 1908, the bridge contains five deck girder spans crossing the Iowa River and a small road. These girders are set on concrete substructures, which tower over the river valley below.
This bridge is one of the largest on the Kansas City-St. Paul "Spine Line", and likely also one of the highest.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition, with little notable deterioration. Some substructures are beginning to spall.
Historic photo of the bridge. Credit to PhotoLibrarian on Flickr, used with Creative Commons permission.
The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the large size but common design.
The photo above is an overview. The bridge can be accessed from the road underneath.
| Upstream | Iowa Falls Rail Bridge (W) |
| Downstream | Steamboat Rock Trail Bridge |