- 1890: 44 miles completed Madison to Litchfield, Illinois by the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railroad
- 1900: CP&StL acquired by the Litchfield & Madison Railway
- 1901: 83 miles completed from Nelson to Peoria, Illinois by the Peoria & Northwestern Railway
- 1901: P&NW acquired by the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1904: 24 miles completed from Benld to Girard, Illinois by the Macoupin County Railway
- 1912: Macoupin County Railway sold to the St. Louis, Peoria & Northwestern Railway
- 1913: 93 miles completed from Kickapoo (Peoria) to Benld, Illinois by the St. Louis, Peoria & Northwestern Railway
- 1913: StLP&NW sold to the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1913: 4 miles completed from Girard to Staunton by the Macoupin County Extension Railway
- 1914: Macoupin County Extension leased to the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1927: 3 miles completed from Staunton to the Litchfield & Madison at DeCamp by the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1957: Litchfield & Madison purchased by the Chicago & North Western Railway
- 1995: Chicago & North Western purchased by Union Pacific Railroad
- 1998: DeCamp to Stallings segment abandoned
- 1998: Barr to Girard segment abandoned
- 1998: DeCamp to Monterey Junction sold to Norfolk Southern Railroad
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific operates the Peoria Subdivision from Nelson to Barr
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific operates the Monterey Subdivision from Nilwood to Monterey Junction
- 1995-Present: Union Pacific operates the Granite City Industrial Lead from Madison to Granite City
- 1998-Present: Norfolk Southern operates the Monterey Branch from DeCamp to Monterey Junction
- 2010-Present: Sangamon Valley Trail is developed in pieces between Barr and Girard
07/17/21
Located near I-80 and IL-40, this large through truss bridge crosses the Hennepin Canal and the Hennepin Canal Parkway, near Buda.
Built in 1905, the bridge consists of a large Quadrangular Through Truss with riveted connections. The bridge is set onto stone abutments, repaired with concrete. The truss also contains a heavy M-frame portal bracing, typical of 20th Century Quadrangular trusses.
The Quadrangular design is rather rare on a national scale, although is actually rather common along the Chicago & North Western. The design was popular due to the resilience demonstrated in the event of damage.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition. As a secondary mainline, the bridge is in better condition than trusses closer to Peoria.
The author has ranked the bridge as being moderately significant, due to the truss design.
The photo above is an overview.
| Upstream | BNSF Hennepin Canal Bridge (Wyanet) |
| Downstream | IAIS Hennepin Canal Bridge (Colona) |