logo

IAIS Raccoon River Tributary Culvert

Concrete Railtop Culvert over Unnamed Tributary of Raccoon River
Booneville, Dallas County, Iowa

Click the Photo Above to See All Photos of This Bridge!
Name IAIS Raccoon River Tributary Culvert
Built By Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad
Contractor Unknown
Currently Owned By Iowa Interstate Railroad
Length 10 Feet Total
Width 1 Track
Height Above Ground 5 Feet (Estimated)
Superstructure Type Railtop Culvert
Substructure Type Concrete
Date Built 1900
Traffic Count 4 Trains/Day (Estimated)
Current Status In Use
Significance Minimal Significance
Documentation Date March 2020


Located east of Booneville, this small railtop culvert crosses an unnamed tributary of the Raccoon River.
Built in 1900,features a standard railtop culvert design. Typically, these culverts were constructed of recycled rail. Oftentimes, they were built using stone blocks. This one is slightly different, as it uses concrete.
It is believed that this bridge likely replaced a wooden trestle of some sort. The bridge appears to be in fair to poor condition, with serious cracking throughout the concrete.
A railtop culvert holds most of its strength in the parallel rails that hold up the deck. While the concrete may have failed, the rails still support the load.

The author has ranked the bridge as being minimally significant, due to the common design of the bridge.
The photo above is looking east along the bridge. The bridge can be accessed from the nearby country road.

Citations

Source Type

Source

Build Date Date stamp
Railroad Line History Source ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele