BNSF Marais des Cygnes River Bridge (Pomona)

Pomona, Franklin County, Kansas

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Name	BNSF Marais des Cygnes River Bridge (Pomona) Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Bridge #69.0
Built By	Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway
Currently Owned By	BNSF Railway
Superstructure Contractor	American Bridge Company of New York
Length	200 Feet
Width	2 Tracks
Height Above Ground	40 Feet (Estimated)
Superstructure Design	Parker Through Truss
Substructure Design	Concrete
Date Built	1905, Substructures Reconstructed 1929
Date Removed	2019
Traffic Count	0 Trains/Day (Bridge has been Replaced)
Current Status	Replaced by a new bridge
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Bridge Number	69A
BNSF Railway Bridge Number	69.0
Significance	Regional Significance
Documentation Date	9/3/2016; 1/28/2017

In 1870, the Kansas City and Santa Fe Railroad and Telegraph Company (KCSFRT) began construction on a 32 mile railroad line between Olathe, Kansas and North Ottawa, Kansas. In 1871, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad (ATSF) continued construction of the line westwards towards Newton, Kansas. In 1879, the Cowley, Sumner and Fort Smith Railroad (CS&FS) completed a disconnected segment, 44 miles in length, between Mulvane, Kansas and Caldwell, Kansas. In 1882, the Kansas City and Olathe Railroad completed a 10 mile line, connecting Olathe to Holliday, Kansas; where an existing ATSF mainline had previously been constructed. This route would immediately be leased to the Southern Kansas Railway (SK). The CS&FS would be consolidated into the Wichita and Southwestern Railway (W&SW) in 1882. In 1883 and 1884, the ATSF would construct an additional 54 miles of railroad for the Kansas City and Emporia Railroad (KC&E) from North Ottawa to Emporia, Kansas. The KCSFRT was sold several times, eventually becoming part of the SK in 1885. The KC&E would also become part of the SK in 1885. In 1887, the Chicago, Kansas & Western Railway (CK&W) constructed an additional 20 miles from Mulvane to Augusta, Kansas, as well as a short segment from Ellinor to Bazaar, Kansas. The CK&W was leased by the ATSF in 1889. The W&SW and SK would be leased by the ATSF in 1899, and all three railroads were consolidated into the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway (ATSF) in 1901.

The ATSF had acquired and constructed a large number of railroad lines throughout the western United States, particularly in Kansas and Oklahoma. This line served as a portion of the principal mainline between Chicago, Kansas City and the West Coast. In addition, this line connected to numerous other ATSF lines, and would quickly become one of the heaviest used lines in Kansas. The entire line from Holliday to Ellinor was double tracked between 1905 and 1910. In 1922, the Eldorado & Santa Fe Railway would complete a connection between El Dorado, Kansas and Bazaar, Kansas. This railroad would be consolidated into the ATSF in 1942. The ATSF would merge with Burlington Northern Railroad in 1996 to form BNSF Railway, the current owner of this line. The Holliday to Wellington segment of this line is operated as the Emporia Subdivision.

Once located along Kansas Terrace southwest of Pomona, this large through truss bridge carried the BNSF Railway mainline across the Marais Des Cygnes River. The bridge was originally constructed in 1905 as part of a double tracking project. The bridge consisted of a single 200-foot 9-panel pin-connected Parker through truss span, set onto concrete abutments. When double tracking the line, the ATSF spared little expense, constructing heavy steel bridges. In 1929, the bridge would be reconstructed with new abutments, possibly to raise the bridge. The bridge remained largely unchanged from 1929 until 2019, when it would be replaced by a modern girder bridge. This particular design of truss was occasionally used for medium to long spans. Despite the decent number of railroad trusses originally constructed throughout Kansas, relatively few remain. This bridge, and the nearby bridge at Quenemo would be replaced by BNSF due to concerns with the structures.

Heavily used mainline structures, such as this bridge, often exceed 100 years old, and are nearing the end of their useful lives to continue supporting heavy railroad traffic. The two bridges were marketed for reuse, provided it was removed from the site. While the bridges were ultimately scrapped, this sort of reuse should be marketed for all railroad truss bridge replacements. Many of these bridges could still feasibly support pedestrian, driveway or light roadway traffic, and agencies should explore options to reuse these historic truss bridges. At the time of replacement, the bridge was in fair to poor condition, with no significant deterioration seen. Weaknesses within the superstructure, not visible from a distance, may have been present in the structure. It is likely that it was more cost effective to replace the bridge instead of strengthening it. The author has ranked the bridge as being regionally significant, due to the relatively uncommon use of railroad Parker through trusses in the United States.

Citations

Builder and build date	American Bridge Company plaque
Railroad History Citation	ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele