This Week In Illinois History: First Railroad Crosses Mississippi River (April 22, 1856)

from This Week in Illinois History · host Clint Cargile

On April 22, 1856, crowds cheered and bands played in Rock Island, Ill., and Davenport, Iowa, as a train chugged across the first bridge to span the Mississippi River. The bridge connected the Chicago and Rock Island Railroad in Illinois and the Mississippi and Missouri Railroad in Iowa.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Apr 20, 2026

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This Week In Illinois History: First Railroad Crosses Mississippi River (April 22, 1856)

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