Another notable railroad bridge constructed during the years 1881 to 1893, is one over the Mississippi river at Minneapolis, Minn., carrying two tracks of the union rail-roads into that,city. Col. Charles C. Smith directed the work. There are four spans of 100 feet, one each of 71 feet, 43 feet and 40 feet, and fifteen of 80 feet. The piers are made of St.Cloud gray granite, the regular ones being 7 feet thick, while the abutment piers have twice that dimension. Above the piers, the material is Kasota limestone.
A portion of the structure, 800 feet in length, is on a 6 degree curve, and as it is situated just below St. Anthony Falls, the view from the bridge shows this most interesting part of the river and is quite picturesque. It contains 30,550 cubic yards of masonry,18.000 cubic yards of stone filling and has a total height of S2 feet, 65 feet being above high water. It is 36 feet across the top, and the masonry part alone cost $650,000.
-Bridge Engineering by Henry Grattan Tyrrell, 1911
The rail-road bridge spanning the Mississippi immediately below the Falls of St.Anthony and forming a graceful curve in front of the great flour mills. Passenger trains over the Great Northern, Northwestern Line, Burlington and Wisconsin Central Railways, all cross this bridge giving the traveler a fine view of the falls and rapids below, the mills on both sides of the river and the exposition building. The bridge carries a double track. It is a fine example of engineering skill.
-Hudson’s Dictionary of Minneapolis and Vicinity, 1912
