Soo Line High Bridge

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The Soo Line High Bridge, also known as the Arcola High Bridge, is a tall steel deck arch railroad bridge that crosses the St. Croix River between Stillwater, Minnesota, and Somerset, Wisconsin. It was built in 1910–11 by the American Bridge Company, designed by engineer C. A. P. Turner.

The bridge rises 184 feet above the river and is about 2,682 feet long with five arches. It replaced a previous low bridge that made trains struggle with steep grades, requiring helper engines and shorter loads. The Wisconsin Central Railway line it served was built in 1884, connecting Chippewa Falls to Minneapolis.

In 1977 the bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places for its engineering and transportation importance, as well as its size and design.

Railroad history: The Wisconsin Central Railway was leased in 1909 by the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway. In 1961 that system merged into the Soo Line Railroad. After Soo Line bought the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, Chicago–Minneapolis traffic moved to that mainline. In 1987 the bridge and much of Wisconsin’s Soo Line track became part of Wisconsin Central Ltd., which Canadian National Railway later acquired in 2001.