Kate-Shelly High Bridge

b28_82

Member
I was heading down to Des Moines last night and I decided to check out the Kate-Shelly High bridge on the way. It is definately a beautiful site and no pictures can do justice for the view. On the southwest side a dirt road goes down a hill and under the bridge as you can see in the first picture. Then you go across a wooden plank bridge on north of the KS bridge. I am definately going back there!!

Also as i was going across that wooden plank bridge I saw a guy on the sandbar with a tripod. So I thought to myself, hmmm odds are this is a railfan so I parked my truck and took a stroll down there talked to him for a while. Turns out he's a sales rep from the South Dakota area and this area happens to be within his territory. Also he does some Articles every once in a while for CTC Board Magazine. He also told me that he was planning on doing an article on the Kate Shelly bridge so I'll be watching that magazine more carefully.

Jake

P.S. Bob - Could you print out some of these pictures and show them to Rob at the club. I'm sure he'd like to see them. Thanks
 

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Jack Doran

New Member
Where is this bridge located at ?
I have been wanting to railfan around in Iowa for a little while. I usually railfan the Clinton sub, I have followed it all the way to Cedar Rapids. Planning on going a little further whenever I get time as I trying to keep track of the CTC of this subdivision. The known point I saw was CTC to Lowden I know by know they should be darn near done to marshalltown as this was a trip in September.

Thanks for info.
 

ozzy

Active Member
Boone - Kate Shelly High Bridge - Kate Shelly was famous for saving a train from going off of the tracks on the bridge that is now known as the Kate Shelly high bridge. It is said that if you look up at the tracks (bridge) at night you can see a mysterious outline of a person and a dim light like a lantern running on the tracks. People around here say that it's Kate forever reliving the incident that saved a train and lots of people. - September 2004 CORRECTION: located west of the City of Boone, is not the bridge where Kate Shelley saved the passenger train. It was actually first structured in early 1900's and was named "The Boone Viaduct". It was renamed for Kate Shelley in the 1960's. The bridge has wonderful tales of "Specter" Steam Engines and ghostly "watchmen" that walk it. The original bridge that Kate Shelley crossed was demolished in the 1930's. Kate Shelley's ghost, accordingly, haunts the hamlet of Moingona, Iowa, South West of City of Boone, where the story took place.
 
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