Alaska Railroad Trestle Over Riley Creek

The Riley Creek bridge, viewed from Government Hill

NPS Photo / Kent Miller

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Cellular Signal, Scenic View/Photo Spot

The Alaska Railway Act of 1914 authorized the federal government to construct a railroad to connect vast mineral resources of Interior Alaska with an ice-free port. In April 1915, President Woodrow Wilson selected a route that spanned from Seward to Fairbanks. The impact of his decision brought the railroad here and, in turn, contributed to the establishment of a national park in 1917 to conserve wildlife.

To avoid the difficulties presented by the Nenana River, surveyors chose to largely stay on the west side of it, leading to a need to span Riley Creek.

The Riley Creek Bridge, manufactured in Pennsylvania and shipped north on 24 rail cars loaded with 600 tons of steel via the Panama Canal, consisted of seven steel towers decked with 30-foot and 60-foot steel plate girders. When finished, the creek crossing would measure 900 feet in length.

In the first week of January 1922, despite blizzards, sub-zero cold, and limited daylight hours, workers installed the first steel "bent." Less than a month later, a steam crane crossed the bridge from south to north. A few days later, despite a minus-30°F wind chill, a celebratory train left Seward for Nenana, arriving on February 5.