The Quincy Rail Bridge is a truss bridge that carries a rail line across the Mississippi River between West Quincy, Missouri , and Quincy, Illinois , USA. It was originally constructed in 1868 for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad , a predecessor of BNSF Railway .
18-679: From the 1950s until 1971 it served the Kansas City Zephyr and American Royal Zephyr daily passenger trains between Chicago and Kansas City. It served Amtrak 's Illinois Zephyr from Chicago to West Quincy, Missouri, from 1971 to 1993. Since the Great Flood of 1993 the Amtrak Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg services terminate at the Quincy station , although after the passengers have disembarked
36-465: A through truss main span of 339 feet (103 m). the other spans of the bridge are deck trusses. When this bridge was constructed, the channel for boat traffic was relocated from the west side of the river to the east side. The bridge opened on November 11, 1960 dedicated by Harry Murphy, president of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. It was built at a cost of $ 9,575,000. With the opening of
54-537: A mirrored schedule, departing the Windy City at 10:00 pm and arriving in Kansas City at 7:30 am. Both trains covered the 466 mile route at an average pace of 49 mph. The original consist included two Vista-Domes (which provided meal service), two Chicago-KC sleepers, one Chicago - St. Joe sleeper, and coaches. The CB&Q simultaneously launched a daylight Chicago-Kansas City service on the same route under
72-535: A new connection between the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad and the Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad . Built by the Quincy Bridge Company and its president Nathaniel Bushnell, the bridge was a swing span , wrought iron Pratt truss which cost $ 1,500,000. The 362-foot long swing truss created two spans of 181 feet. Sixteen fixed spans using a Whipple truss complete the river crossing to make
90-530: A passenger train travelling east from Missouri fell into the bay after failing to stop when the swing bridge was open for a barge. Kansas City Zephyr The Kansas City Zephyr was a streamliner passenger train service operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CB&Q) between Chicago and Kansas City . The largest fleet of named streamliners in the United States were
108-813: Is preserved in the current name of the Illinois Zephyr . Original Kansas City Zephyr , station stops: American Royal Zephyr The American Royal Zephyr was a streamlined passenger train service operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad between Chicago and Kansas City . This CB&Q Zephyr was named for the American Royal , one of the Midwest 's largest and oldest livestock exhibition, professional rodeo, and horse show. The American Royal Zephyr made its inaugural run on February 1, 1953, as an all-new overnight streamliner between Chicago and Kansas City. The new train
126-609: The Branson Scenic Railway in Branson, Missouri. The Illinois Zephyr and Carl Sandburg , passenger trains operated by Amtrak that run 258 miles (415 km) between Chicago and Quincy, Illinois , are the descendants of the Kansas City Zephyr and American Royal Zephyr passenger train routes operated by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until 1968 and 1971. The name Zephyr
144-538: The KCZ was discontinued, becoming a nameless local train between Chicago and West Quincy, MO. The Kansas City Zephyr had two consists, a dorm-buffet-lounge car and a square-end parlor-observation car in each. Two of the original railcars from the Kansas City Zephyr are still in use today. The Silver Garden , 1952 Budd Dome Lounge Coach and the Silver Terrace , 1952 Budd Dome Observation cars current operate on
162-491: The Burlington's Zephyrs. Competing in markets against the famed Eagles, Chiefs, 400's, Cities and Hiawathas on almost every route, the polished Zephyrs covered almost every route on the mainline of the Burlington and for years held the speed/distance title in the record books. The Kansas City Zephyr made its inaugural run on February 1, 1953, as an all-new daylight streamliner between Chicago and Kansas City. The new train
180-555: The banner of the American Royal Zephyr . The Kansas City Zephyr never lived up to ridership expectations, and it was not long before equipment from the KCZ was being shuffled off to other trains. Intense competition came from the Santa Fe, which ran six daily streamliners in each direction between the city pair on a shorter schedule than CB&Q. On April 10, 1968, just over 15 years after its promising beginning,
198-558: The banner of the Kansas City Zephyr . Like its daylight counterpart, the American Royal Zephyr never lived up to ridership expectations, and it was not long before equipment from the ARZ was being shuffled off to other trains. Intense competition came from the Santa Fe, which ran six daily streamliners in each direction through Kansas City on a shorter schedule than CB&Q, and an existing, dedicated overnight service called
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#1732772995663216-443: The bridge 3,189 feet long (2 spans at 250 feet, three spans at 200 feet, and eleven spans at 157 feet). A second bridge across Quincy Bay (the waterway between present-day Quinsippi Island and the city of Quincy) included another draw span. The original bridge was replaced in 1899 as the original wrought-iron truss could not carry the heavier trains and engines in use at the time. This bridge included wagon bridge decks cantilevered off
234-429: The bridge, the railroad made a donation to the city of the island between the river and Quincy Bay (Quinsippi Island) and one of the old bridges across the bay for use as a recreational area. The first structure at this location was completed at ten AM on November 7, 1868 when bridge engineer Thomas C. Clarke tested the structure with the crossing of locomotive engines. The bridge and a total of two miles of track formed
252-419: The facility. Kansas City Zephyr (KCZ) #36 departed Kansas City at 12:01 pm, arriving in Chicago at 8:00 pm. Westbound counterpart #35 departed the Windy City at 12:30 pm, arriving in Kansas City at 8:45 pm. The original consist included two Vista-Domes, coaches, diner, and observation car, all built by Budd. The CB&Q simultaneously launched an overnight Chicago-Kansas City service on the same route under
270-511: The sides of the rail bridges to accommodate farm traffic and automobiles. Once the Quincy Memorial Bridge opened in 1930, the wagon bridge decks were subsequently removed from this railroad bridge. This bridge included two separate bridges across Quincy Bay and a junction on the island between the bay and the river. Both bridges across Quincy Bay were swing bridges to allow passage of ships into Quincy Bay. On November 27, 1915,
288-616: The trains do cross the bridge to the BNSF Railway yard in West Quincy, where the equipment is oriented in the proper direction for the return trip on the wye and is stored until the next departure. This Mississippi River crossing does serve as a backup route should the Fort Madison Toll Bridge crossing be unavailable. The current structure, located at Mississippi River mile 380.0, was built in 1960. It has
306-571: Was prompted by the completion the previous October of the $ 16-million "Kansas City Shortcut", 49 miles of new track that made the route shorter, flatter, and straighter. The new alignment shaved two hours off of the previous shortest route, and made CB&Q optimistic that it could compete successfully against its entrenched rival, the AT&;SF, on this busy route. A new modern station was built at West Quincy, Missouri (1953) and operated until 1993, when Mississippi River flooding (levee breached) destroyed
324-503: Was prompted by the completion the previous October of the $ 16-million "Kansas City Shortcut", 49 miles of new track that made the route shorter, flatter, and straighter. The new alignment shaved 2 hours off of the previous shortest route, and made CB&Q optimistic that it could compete successfully against its entrenched rival, the AT&SF, on this busy route. American Royal Zephyr #56 departed Kansas City at 10:00 pm, arriving in Chicago at 7:30 am. Westbound counterpart #55 operated on
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