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Soldier Creek Trail Bridge (West)

Through Plate Girder Bridge over Soldier Creek
Fort Dodge, Webster County, Iowa

Click the Photo Above to See All Photos of This Bridge!
Name Soldier Creek Trail Bridge (West)
Built By Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway
Contractor Unknown
Currently Owned By City of Fort Dodge
Length 74 Feet Total
Width 1 Track
Height Above Ground 10 Feet (Estimated)
Superstructure Type Through Plate Girder
Substructure Type Stone Masonry and Concrete
Date Built 1909
Traffic Count 0 Trains/Day (Bridge is a Trail)
Current Status Rails to Trails
M&StL Bridge Number 153
Significance Local Significance
Documentation Date March 2019


This standard through girder bridge is the western of three identical structures crossing Soldier Creek on the Fort Dodge Nature Trail.
Built in 1909 using a single through girder, this bridge features a single through girder span, set onto concrete and stone substructures.
These structures feature ballasted decks, and stone substructures. The bridge remains in an overall good condition.
While rather ordinary, the bridge does feature one notable feature. Graffiti has been painted on the bridge, similar to a Lionel Model Railrod bridge.
This graffiti does make the bridge a local landmark of sorts.

The author has ranked the bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design of the bridge.
However, the bridge does gain some significance from the graffiti on the bridge.
The photo above is an overview. It can be accessed from a park.

Citations

Source Type

Source

Build Date ICC Valuation Summary Report, courtesy Doug Harding collection
Railroad Line History Source ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele