Omaha daily bee., 1896-01-22
BRIDGE READY FOR TRAFFIC
New Structure at Sioux City Formally
Opened to the Public.
CONSERVATION OF LONG DEFERRED HOPES
People of the Corn Palace City Ex-
pcct Great BENEFITS from the En-
terprise-History of Failures
and Success.

SIOUX CITY, Jan. 21.-(Special Telegram.)
The new Pacific Short Line bridge be-
tween the Iowa and Nebraska banks Of the
Missouri river at this point was thrown open
to the public today. Foot passengers were
allowed to cross at 8 a. M, but not .until
1920 did the first engine, No. 10 of the
Pacific Short Line road, and an electric car
Of the Sioux City Traction company move
upon the structure. The draw at the Ne
braska approach was opened at noon for
the first time and at 2 p. m, the hour set
for the formal opening, a train OF four cars
bearing a party Of $50, among whom were
the officers of the bridge company and the
members Of the Fourth Regiment band,
crossed to South Sioux City, Neb., whence,
after a short stay, the visitors returned In
carriages to this city.
At the banquet given by the Sioux City
Commercial association in the evening A. w.
Erwin, president of the organization, acted
as POSTMASTER. Among the 300 guests were
prominent railroad men from neighboring
cities, several state officers, the city officials,
the officers and directors of the bridge COM
pany and many local business and professional
men.
The Pacific Short Line bridge is one Of
the largest not only on the Missouri river,
but in the United States. 1t consists Of four
spans, two fixed at the center, with a draw
at either end. The former are each 500 feet
in length and the latter 470 feet. The trestle
approaches are altogether 1900 feet long.
The bridge is ten feet above high water
and about thirty feet above low water mark.
1t furnishes accommodation for railway and
street car tracks, wagons and foot passen-
gers. The total width is fifty feet. Over
1900 900 pounds Of steel entered into the
construction and the total cost has been
nearly 81, 300, 900.
OPENS UP NEW TERRITORY.
No definite arrangements have yet been
made with any railway lines for the use Of
the structure. The Communication company
has negotiations pending with several COM
panies, however, and expects soon to have
several trains a day running over 1t and In
the near future to open up to Sioux City
jobbers a large territory in Nebraska which
imperfect railway connections have hitherto
kept closed against them. The benefit to
the retail trade, which has been compelled
in the past to depend on ferry boats or the
%pontoon bridge when the state of the river
rendered it possible to keep one in, will be
immense.
The original bridge company was incorpo-
rated with a capital of 81, 900, 001 in the fall
Of 1889 by Donald Mclean. Craig L.. Wright,
David Mckenzie, Leverett Clark and John
Pierce. J. A. L.. Waddell Of Kansas City
was employed as engineer, and in July, 1890,
active operations were commenced upon the
first pier. Work was suspended a few months
later, owing to the failure of Mclean, the
principal protector, ana was not resumed
until the fall of 1898, when A. S. Garretson
and the famous Sioux City rail
road syndicate took e the matter up.
One pier had been completed and three were
well under way when the panic Of 1893 caused
a second break in operations in April Of
that year. For a time there was no indica-
ton that anything more would ever be done.
The Credits Communication company, a cor
p~oration formed by the creditors Of the
wrecked Sioux City enterprises to save as
much as possible from the ruins, finally de-
cided, however, that by completing it the
bridge might be made q valuable asset. A
2 per cent tax was voted by the city to
assist the company in the work and in
June, 1895, a fresh start was made under
the Combination Bridge company, a sub
sidiary organization formed by the mem
bers of the Communication company to carry
on the work. The bridge. was practically
completed January 1, but some minor details
remained to be finished and the formal open
ing was accordingly postponed until the
21st. To the south, with the exception Of
the Omaha bridge at this point, the nearest
bridge is at Blair, sixty-ive miles distant,
and to the north at Bismarck, a distance of
700 miles.