The following year, the route was completed to Austin, Minnesota. By 1870, the route would be absorbed by the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway.
The railroad became a part of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad. The Milwaukee Road operated a number of lines throughout Southern Minnesota. This route was the main route to Iowa from the Twin Cities.
In 1915, the railroad was reorganized as the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railway in 1928. This route stayed a secondary mainline until 1985, when the Milwaukee Road was merged with the Soo Line (Canadian Pacific).
Being a secondary route, the route was sold off in the late 1980s or early 1990s. In 1997, it became a part of I&M Rail Link, and later the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroad in 2002. By 2008, the IC&E along with sister Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern became a part of Canadian Pacific Railway.
Currently, a portion of this line from Iowa to Owatonna is operated as CP, while CP owns the line from Owatonna to Faribault.
Progressive Rail leases the line between Eagan and Faribault. Union Pacific operates the route as its Albert Lea Subdivision between Rosemount and Comus. Between Eagan and Mendota, the railroad has been abandoned.
02/25/23
This two span deck girder crosses the Cannon River near South Alexander Park in Faribault.
Built in 1898 likely to replace an older truss, this bridge features a pair of heavily built deck girder spans sitting on stone and concrete substructures.
The stonework on the bridge appears to have been constructed at different times, also leading to the conclusion of a truss bridge existing here before this bridge.
Overall, the bridge appears to remain in fair condition. Water levels in this section of river are normally too high to gather an accurate assesment of the condition of the structure.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview. The bridge can be accessed from an adjacent park.
| Upstream | Sakatah Trail Cannon River Bridge |
| Downstream | CGW Cannon River Bridges |