By the next year, the railroad would become a part of the Missouri Pacific Railway.
The Verdigris Valley, Independence and Western Railroad would continue the line south with an 81 mile extension to Coffeyville, Kansas in 1885.
Another extension would be made in 1886 between Kansas City, Missouri and Paola. This connection was built by the Kansas City and Southwestern Railway.
Both of these new railroads would become affiliated with the Missouri Pacific. The KC&SW would become a part of the MP in 1909.
However, the VVI&W merged into the Kansas and Colorado Pacific Railway in 1891, which in turn merged into the MP by 1909.
This line became an instrumental line for the Missouri Pacific. While it was not a class 1 mainline, it served as a direct route between Kansas City and Oklahoma.
By 1917, the railroad would be reorganized as the Missouri Pacific Railroad, under which it remained until 1982.
In 1982, the MP merged with Union Pacific and Western Pacific Railroad to form the Pacific Rail Systems. By 1997, the MP would be fully absorbed into the UP.
Presently, Union Pacific is the operator of this line, and it is known as the Coffeyville Subdivision.
06/26/21
This simply constructed bridge is built of a through girder design.
The bridge was reportedly built in 1902, likely to replace an earlier truss bridge.
It is simply constructed with a pair of through girder spans. These spans are set onto concrete substructures.
While simply built, the design is extremely economical and was built heavy. The bridge remains in good condition.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the standardized nature of this structure.
The photo above is looking north along the bridge. The bridge can be accessed from nearby roads.
| Upstream | Fredonia Rail Bridge |
| Downstream | Confluence with Verdigris River |