This new direct route created a connection between St. Louis and Kansas City. From Birmingham, the route used another railroad to access Kansas City.
By 1871, the route would become a part of the St. Louis, Kansas City and Northern Railway, which eventually became a part of the Wabash, St. Louis and Pacific Railway by 1878.
The Wabash, as it would become commonly known, had built a considerable amount of trackage east of Missouri through Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. This was the westernmost mainline of the route.
While serving primarily as a direct route across Missouri, it also led to expansions. One such expansion left the mainline at Brunswick, Missouri and headed north to Omaha.
By 1889, the route became directly owned by the Wabash Railroad, which would be reorganized as the Wabash Railway in 1915 and back to railroad in 1941.
By 1964, the Wabash was a desirable merging partner. As a result, the Norfolk and Western Railway purchased the Wabash.
In 1982, the N&W merged with the Southern Railway to form Norfolk Southern, the current operator of the line. It is still used heavily as a Norfolk Southern mainline to Kansas City.
06/26/21
This common style overpass crosses Missouri Highway 5 between Keytesville and Salisbury, near US-24.
The bridge was originally constructed in 1912 with a single concrete slab span to cross a pedestrian and wagon path.
In 1929, a through girder span would be added to the structure. This span was added to the east end of the bridge.
The substructures are all constructed of concrete. The through girder span crosses present day MO-5. The concrete slab span is no longer in use.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design. Fortunately, the bridge remains in good condition.
A special thank you to James Holzmeier for finding information on this bridge!
The photo above is an overview.