FIRST - Wabash R.R. Bridge over the Missouri River - St. Charles, MO
Posted by: 
YoSam.
N 38° 47.138 W 090° 31.235
15S E 715358 N 4295908
Memorial to the 18 killed in a column collapse.
Waymark Code: WM16TPD
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 10/04/2022
Views: 1
County of memorial: St. Charles County
Location of memorial: 100 yards N of W. Clay St., in cemetery, St. Charles
Erected: Monument 1871
Erected by: The City of St. Charles;
Plaque: VFW 2866, St. Charles;
Marker: Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Plaque Text:
Monument
[names]Who were killed when the chain (fence) and cable broke while they were hoisting a 4 ton column, during the constructions of the First Wabash R.R. Bridge across the Missouri River at St. Charles, on Nov. 11th, 1870. _ VFW 2866
Time Line Text:
History of the Wabash Bridge
1868 - Construction of the Wabash begins
1870 - A 15 foot steel column collapses during construction. Eighteen bridge workers killed
1871 - Bridge is completed in May, and, at the time, was the first bridge to span the Missouri River.
1879 - A portion of the Wabash Bridge collapsed while a train was crossing. Eighteen cars fell in to the river and five men were killed.
1881 - The Wabash Railroad Bridge, once again, fails. 31 cattle perish and freight cars are hurled into the river. John Kirby, an engineer, was the only human fatality.
1884 - The steamboat Montana collides with a Wabash Railroad Bridge Pier. There was no salvaging the boat. Its remains are on the bottom of the Missouri River and can still be seen in low water levels.
I believe this is a section of the column and cable that broke when being hoisted to the bridge. I cannot run down just what it is. It has an anchor on the back side hanging from the top, and looks like it may be a boiler stack.
I think it is part of the bridge structure, but not sure where.
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