The Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway (BCR&N) was a railroad that operated in the United States from 1876 to 1903. It was formed to take over the operations of the bankrupt Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Minnesota Railway, which was, in turn, the result of merging several predecessor lines, the construction of which began in 1869. The corporate headquarters were in

Cedar Rapids, Iowa Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies o ...

, and it had operations in Iowa and in Minnesota.Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Railroad
Portrait and Biographical Album of Linn County, Iowa, Volume 2
Chapman Bros, Chicago, 1887; pages 931-933. It was succeeded by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway. The original mainline ran from

Burlington, Iowa Burlington is a city in, and the county seat of, Des Moines County, Iowa, United States. The population was 23,982 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a decline from the 26,839 population in 2000 United States Census, 2000. Burlington ...

via

Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in u ...

north to

Albert Lea, Minnesota Albert Lea ( ) is a city in Freeborn County, Minnesota, Freeborn County, in southern Minnesota. It is the county seat. Its population was 18,492 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is at the junction of Interstates Intersta ...

, with a perpetual lease of the 'Minneapolis Road' from there to

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

. By 1882, branch lines had been built to Traer,

Postville Postville is a city in Allamakee County, Iowa, Allamakee and Clayton County, Iowa, Clayton counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. It lies near the junction of four counties and at the intersection of U.S. Routes U.S. Route 18 in Iowa, 18 and U.S. Ro ...

, Muscatine,

Iowa City Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's fifth-most populous city. The Iowa City metropolitan area, which enc ...

, and the coal mines of the What Cheer region, all in Iowa. Through passenger service was offered from Minneapolis to St. Louis in conjunction with the St. Louis, Keokuk and Northwestern Railroad (later part of the

CB&Q The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, CB&Q, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado ...

Dual gauge operations

In 1880, the Burlington Cedar Rapids and Northern granted running rights to the

Burlington and Northwestern Railway The Burlington and Northwestern Railway (B&NW) was a narrow gauge railroad system in Iowa that operated during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It connected Burlington, Iowa with branches to Washington and Oskaloosa, Iowa. In ...

from

north to Mediapolis, a distance of 13.77 miles. Since the latter line used three foot gauge until regauged in the 20th century, a third rail was put down on this stretch of mainline, converting it to

dual gauge Dual gauge railroad track has three or four rails, allowing vehicles of two track gauges to run on it. Signalling and sidings are more expensive to install on dual gauge tracks than on two single gauge tracks. Dual gauge is used when there i ...

Legacy

The last run of the Zephyr Rocket between St. Louis and Minneapolis over the former BCR&N mainline was on April 8–9, 1967. Freight service on the line from Burlington to Cedar Rapids ceased with the bankruptcy of the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The original Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At ...

in March 1980. In the early 1990s, the

Hoover Nature Trail The Hoover Nature Trail (HNT) is a crushed limestone rail trail in eastern Iowa that follows the old Chicago, Rock Island, and Pacific Railroad route between Burlington and Cedar Rapids. The trail is a shared-use trail for bicycling, hiking, jog ...

began acquiring the Burlington to Cedar Rapids right of way for conversion to a recreational trail. Between Cedar Rapids and Manly, Iowa, the former mainline remains in service, operated by the Iowa Northern Railway. Union Pacific still uses remnants of the former BCR&N branch to

Sioux Falls, SD Sioux Falls ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 117th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into northern Lincoln County. The population was 192, ...

that ran off of the mainline at Vinton, IA with segments remaining between Dows and Clarion, as well as between Goldfield, IA and Superior, IA.

Surviving passenger facilities

At least eight of its stations survive: *

Station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

Clarion, Iowa Clarion is a city in and the county seat of Wright County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,810 at the time of the 2020 census. History Clarion is the birthplace of the four-leaf clover emblem used by the 4-H Clubs of America, conc ...

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Wright County, Iowa *

Depot Depot may refer to: Places * Depot, Poland, a village * Depot Glacier (disambiguation) * Depot Island (disambiguation) * Depot Nunatak * Depot Peak Brands and enterprises * Maxwell Street Depot, a restaurant in Chicago, United States * Of ...

Dows, Iowa Dows is a city in Franklin and Wright counties of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 521 at the time of the 2020 census. The town was incorporated on May 3, 1892. History Dows got its start in the year 1880, following construction of ...

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Wright County, Iowa *

Greene, Iowa Greene is a city in Butler County, Iowa, United States, along the Shell Rock River, and along Butler County's northern border, where Butler and Floyd counties meet. The population was 990 at the time of the 2020 census. History The community ...

*Depot in

Kalona, Iowa Kalona is a city in Washington County, Iowa. It is part of the Iowa City metropolitan area. The population was 2,630 at the time of the 2020 census. Kalona is the second-largest city in Washington County. History Amish settlement in what is ...

(relocated to Kalona Historic Village). * Depot, track and bridge in

Rock Rapids, Iowa Rock Rapids is a city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Iowa, United States. The population was 2,611 in the 2020 census, an increase from 2,573 in the 2000 census. History A post office called Rock Rapids has been in operation since 1 ...

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Lyon County, Iowa *

Vinton, Iowa Vinton is a city in Benton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 4,938 in the 2020 census, a decrease from 5,102 in 2000. It is also part of the Cedar Rapids Metropolitan Statistical Area. Vinton is the county seat of Benton County. ...

, listed on the

National Register of Historic Places listings in Benton County, Iowa This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Benton County, Iowa. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Benton County, Iowa, United Stat ...

Walker, Iowa Walker is a city in Linn County, Iowa. The population was 688 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Cedar Rapids, Iowa metropolitan area. History Walker began as an outgrowth of the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Northern Railway. It was named i ...

Rockford, Iowa Rockford is a city in Floyd County, Iowa, United States, at the confluence of the Shell Rock and Winnebago rivers. The population was 758 at the time of the 2020 census. Rockford's post office opened in 1855. Geography Rockford's longitude an ...

Pipestone, Minnesota Pipestone is a city in and the county seat of Pipestone County, Minnesota. The population was 4,215 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The city is also the site of the Pipestone National Monument. History Pipestone was platted in Oc ...

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Pipestone County, Minnesota *

in Sioux Falls, South Dakota *Depot in

Lone Tree, Iowa Lone Tree is a city in southeastern Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is part of the Iowa City, Iowa Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,357 at the time of the 2020 census. History Lone Tree was platted by John W. Jayne ...

, now a community center

Other structures

The corporate headquarters building at 411 1st Ave. SE in

still carries the BCR&N Ry initials at the top of the wall facing the tracks. The historic facade facing First Avenue, constructed in 1885, has been completely modernized. The building now serves Skogman Realty. The former roundhouse of the Iowa City branch was still standing in Iowa City in 2010. The former Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern Freight House, built in 1898 on the corner of Front and High Streets in

, is now a restaurant. This building was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1983. During the Iowa Flood of 2008, this building was inundated with four feet of water. The construction of this freight house (replacing an earlier structure) lead to a court battle with the Burlington Gaslight Company that was ultimately decided by the

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...

. A two-span through truss bridge, composed of a Warren truss and a Lattice truss, exists in

in Napoleon Park. It is now being used by the

Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway The Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway , also known as the CRANDIC, is a Class III railroad operating in the US state of Iowa. The CRANDIC currently operates of main line and more than of yard trackage in four east central Iowa counties. The ...

, albeit infrequently. An abandoned three-span Parker through truss bridge, built circa 1890, exists over the Iowa River in Columbus Junction. Several bridges and culverts in

have been reused on the Cedar River Trail. Several other bridges have been reused on the various portions of the

. A partially destroyed bridge exists in the

Czech Village Cedar Rapids is a city in Linn County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. The population was 137,710 at the 2020 census, making it the second-most populous city in Iowa. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa ...

neighborhood of

. Iowa Northern Railway operates across several BCRN structures, including a Warren through truss bridge over Beaver Creek northeast of

Cedar Falls, Iowa Cedar Falls is a city in Black Hawk County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the city population was 40,713. Cedar Falls is home to the University of Northern Iowa, a public university. Cedar Falls along with neighbori ...

. A former Burlington, Cedar Rapids & Northern deck truss bridge, built circa 1882, exists over the West Fork Des Moines River in

Estherville, IA Estherville is a city in Emmet County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,904 in the 2020 census, a decline from 6,656 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Emmet County. History Emmet County was initially created by an act of th ...

. The bridge is still in use by the

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

References

External links

{{Portal, Railways Defunct Iowa railroads Defunct Minnesota railroads Predecessors of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Railway companies established in 1876 Railway companies disestablished in 1903 1876 establishments in the United States