The railroad bridge at Clinton was built for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad for their mainline between Chicago and Omaha. The original bridge at this location was the second bridge to cross the Mississippi River. It was involved in several litigations from steamboat operators. The third such lawsuit was conclusively settled in favor of the railroads, ending the war between the bridge operators and steamboat operators. That did not, however, erase the fact that the narrow swing span of the original bridge probably was a navigation hazard.

The bridge that we see today was built in 1909. It is brute of a bridge and it contains a lot of steel. It has to. Since it serves one the most heavily used Union Pacific Railroad mainlines, it takes a pounding from over 150 trains a day. Interestingly enough, no two spans of this bridge look alike.