Re: [CBQ] Hannibal & St. Joseph Bridge over the Missouri River 1869

["Archie Hayden" <klinerarch@charter.net>]

I assume ferries were considered part of the main line.

On Apr 2, 2021, at 9:52 AM, Dave Lotz <Dave_Lotz@bellsouth.net> wrote:



When the Union Pacific began heading west from Omaha in 1862, there were no railroads connecting to it from the east.  After the Chicago and North Western Railway reached Council Bluffs in 1867, the Union Pacific Transfer company maintained a ferry service until the first railroad bridge between Council Bluffs and Omaha opened on March 27, 1872.  It finally connected the first Transcontinental Railroad to the eastern United States. The bridge was rebuilt twice, with the current bridge opening on December 20, 1916.  The bridge became the property of the UP when it absorbed the C&NW in 1995.

 

From: CBQ@groups.io <CBQ@groups.io> On Behalf Of William Hirt
Sent: Friday, April 2, 2021 10:43 AM
To: CBQ@groups.io
Subject: Re: [CBQ] Hannibal & St. Joseph Bridge over the Missouri River 1869

 

At the time of completion of the Hannibal Bridge, the Kansas Pacific only extended to northwest Kansas from Kansas City. That was the furthest west of any railroad not named Union Pacific at the time that extended eastward to the Missouri River. The Kansas Pacific was not completed to Denver until August 1870 where it connected to the Denver Pacific.  The Denver Pacific extended from Denver to Cheyenne connecting to the Union Pacific.

New rail construction was slow following the Civil War due to various financial issues. It was not until 1870s and 1800s that most of the lines west of Kansas City were built.

Bill Hirt

On 4/2/2021 12:39 AM, orderlypackrat@gmail.com wrote:

Thank you for anyone of you who may answer my inquiry. I'm thankful to have found this portal for sage advice!

I know that the “Golden Spike Ceremony” at Promontory Summit, Utah, took place May 10, 1869.

Looking closer, that event conjoined San Francisco and Omaha.

So, for the line to have been complete coast to coast, the Missouri River FIRST had to be bridged.

The Missouri River was bridged at Kansas City and celebrated on July 3, 1869.

 

Q: Would not the last tie on that bridge…and more specifically the spike holding the last rail in place on that bridge…have been the actual, “last spike” of the Transcontinental Railroad?

 

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