Rating:
5 votes

Southern Indiana Railroad (1897-1906) - Kitton Ditch Bridge

Clay County, Indiana

Photos 

Photo taken by J.P. in December 2009

Enlarge

BH Photo #150549

Map 

Description 

Photos show the Kitton ditch bridge and the abutments for an overpass that would have carried the railroad over E. Ashboro Road a few hundred yards to the east. A bridge over the Eel River east of here (BH 45892) was a part of the same project.

Facts 

Overview
Closed-spandrel arch bridge over Kitton Ditch on unbuilt rail line
Location
Clay County, Indiana
Status
Closed to all traffic
History
Built as part of railroad right of way that was never finished.
Railroad
- Southern Indiana Railroad (1897-1906)
Design
Closed-spandrel arch
Also called
Nicknamed by us: Gates of Narnia Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+39.38938, -87.04938   (decimal degrees)
39°23'22" N, 87°02'58" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/495747/4359988 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Center Point
Inventory number
BH 43726 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Arch (12,105)
Built 1905 (799)
Built during 1900s (7,228)
Clay County, Indiana (78)
Closed (2,666)
Closed-spandrel arch (3,995)
Deck arch (11,343)
Indiana (4,923)
Railroad (15,439)
Southern Indiana Railroad (1897-1906) (3)

Update Log 

  • July 27, 2019: Updated by Luke: Created seperate Southern Indiana Railroad category for the bridge.
  • July 27, 2019: New photos from Mike Daffron
  • October 13, 2013: New photos from Jim Grey
  • August 14, 2010: Updated by Ed Hollowell: builder
  • August 13, 2010: Updated by Ed Hollowell: Added Information
  • December 8, 2009: Added by J.P.

Related Bridges 

Sources 

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Comments 

Kitton Ditch Abandoned Railroad Bridge
Posted July 27, 2019, by Melissa Brand-Welch (melissabrandwelch [at] msn [dot] com)

I Love these !

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted October 13, 2013, by Jim Grey (mobilene [at] gmail [dot] com)

I visited this 10/12/13. I was exploring as many of the original alignments of State Road 46 as I could find from Terre Haute to about Nashville. My old maps from when SR 46 went into service (1931) show that the highway originally used this road.

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted July 17, 2010, by Mike Roegner (roegner [at] soltec [dot] net)

That was 6 years in Leavenworth, wasn't it? John Walsh wanted to do 2 things in his life: own a bank and own a railroad. It was his unfortunate method of financing his railroad that got him in trouble.

The Walsh Road ran from Chicago Heights, IL to the coal fields of southern Indiana. When it was built in 1906, The New York Central also built their line from Indiana Harbor, IN to get coal from southern Illinois. The 2 lines crossed like a big X at a little place called Campbell Station, IL. The Poland Road Bridge (BH15705) is a remnant of that place. The Walsh Road, now the KB&S, ran over the top of the NYC. The demolished Jenkins Ford Trestle (BH 44136) was also a part of that line, originally being called The Walsh Road Trestle.

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted July 16, 2010, by Ed Hollowell (erhollowell [at] aol [dot] com)

I was just there today and found that this is two structures. One is a very high culvert over a creek. The second is an over pass over a county road. This was part of an aborted rail line that was to have gone to Indianapolis. It was the brainchild of a Chicago banker named Walsh in the 1900 period. He went broke and then to jail. The right of way was supposed to have been cleared and improved most of the way to Indianapolis but no rail was ever laid. It was an extension of his line from Terre Haute to Westport which was bought by the Milwaukee Road railroad. I also found the piers to a bridge over a stream near Bowling Green. I have pictuers and will post an entry when I get a chance.

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted June 22, 2010, by Jeff Wieland (jjwieland [at] gmail [dot] com)

It looks like picture 1 is a different structure from the others. There is a photo of the structure in picture 1 in Elmer Sulzer's "Ghost Railroads of Indiana". I'm pretty sure that the structure in the other pictures is also pictured there, along with more info about John Walsh and the Southern Indiana Railroad.

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted December 9, 2009, by James Norwood

I have added a link to a site that talks about a railroad line that was graded between Blackhawk and Bowling Green, Indiana and never had tracks laid down before the company went belly up. This could be the reason for these structures existance. More research would have to be done to be sure. Hope this helps, James

Kitton Ditch Abadoned Bridge
Posted December 8, 2009, by J.P. (wildcatjon2000 [at] gmail [dot] com)

heres the deal with this. First ill be honest i have no idea. there is nothing show past railtracks. I spotted this off the side of Indiana 46. We went to investigate and well this is our theory. We believe a railroad was to be built there but it never happened. If you have any information email me please.