By 1856, it would reach Jefferson City; set onto the Missouri River. The line was constructed as a wide-gauge railroad. It would be standard-gauged in 1869.
The railroad would eventually be the first to reach Kansas City. After the American Civil War and a financial panic, the railroad was reorganized as the Missouri Pacific Railroad.
This railroad would become the mainline of the Missouri Pacific. A second mainline would be added to the railroad between 1926 and 1929, working east.
This increased the traffic, and was one of the later mainlines to be double tracked in the area.
By 1982, the Missouri Pacific would merge with Union Pacific and Western Pacific to form Union Pacific Holdings. By 1997, the MP would be completely merged into the Union Pacific.
Today, Union Pacific still operates this line with a solid traffic base. It is known as the Jefferson City Subdivision, and carries a decent amount of traffic.
06/26/21
Located between Gray Summit and Labadie, this small concrete slab/box culvert crosses Purina Drive.
Built in 1928 while this line was upgraded and rebuilt, the bridge consists of a small concrete box culvert, set onto concrete substructures.
This bridge is rather plain, other than the bright red color it has been painted. This style bridge was extremely common for all railroads in North America.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in excellent condition.
The author has ranked this bridge as being minimally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.