UP 95th Street Bridge

Blue Earth, Faribault County, Minnesota

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Overview
North approach
North pier
North abutment
South pier
South approach
South abutment
Looking south
Looking south
Missing plaque
Looking north
Looking north
Looking north
Overview

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Default Pic
Overview
North approach
North pier
North abutment
South pier
South approach
South abutment
Looking south
Looking south
Missing plaque
Looking north
Looking north
Looking north
Overview
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Caption:
Name UP 95th Street Bridge
Chicago & North Western Railway Bridge #424
Built By Chicago & North Western Railway
Currently Owned By Union Pacific Railroad
Superstructure Contractor American Bridge Company of New York
Length 136 Feet Total, 55 Foot Main Span
Width 1 Track
Height Above Ground 12 Feet 0 Inches
Superstructure Design Through Plate Girder and Timber Pile Trestle
Substructure Design Timber Pile
Date Built 1915
Traffic Count 2 Trains/Day (Estimated)
Current Status In Use
Chicago & North Western Railway Bridge Number 424
Significance Local Significance
Documentation Date 7/7/2017
In 1899, the Minnesota and Iowa Railway (M&I) began construction of a new railroad between the existing Chicago & North Western Railway (C&NW) line at Sanborn, Minnesota, extending 47 miles to Fox Lake, Minnesota. The same year, the Iowa, Minnesota and Northwestern Railway (IM&NW) constructed 59 miles of new railroad extending from Mason City, Iowa to Blue Earth, Minnesota. In 1900, that railroad would complete an additional 29 miles to Fox Lake in 1900. Both the M&I and IM&NW became part of the Chicago & North Western Railway in 1900. The C&NW operated this as a secondary route, connecting traffic coming from South Dakota and Minnesota to the mainline through Iowa, via an extension to Belle Plaine, Iowa.
In 1989, the C&NW sold the Sanborn to Comfrey segment to the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad (DM&E) and abandoned the segment between Comfrey and Butterfield. The DM&E would promptly abandon the Sanborn to Comfrey segment, and sell it to the Minnesota Department of Transportation. In 1995, the C&NW would be purchased by the Union Pacific Railroad. Today, Union Pacific operates the segment between Butterfield and Mason City as the Fairmont Subdivision. The segment from Butterfield to Comfrey has been mostly regraded, and the segment from Comfrey to Sanborn is railbanked.

Located southeast of Blue Earth, this through plate girder bridge crosses 95th Street. Reportedly built in 1915, the bridge features a 55-foot through plate girder span, reportedly fabricated in 1915 by American Bridge Company. The girder is approached by four trestle spans on either end, and the entire bridge is set onto timber pile substructures. The bridge also runs at a heavy 55-degree skew.

Maps from 1918 indicate that a 33-foot girder was used at this location. It seems possible that the 1915 girder was originally constructed at a different location, and installed here at a later date. Railroads often reused steel bridge spans as a cost saving effort. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair condition, with no critical defects noted during a 2022 inspection. The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.