{"nrhp_refnum":"93000123","name":"Texas and New Orleans Railroad Bridge","other_names":["Site No. 618"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Southern Pacific RR tracks, 0.25 mi. W of Old US 59, over the Colorado R.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Wharton","county":"Wharton County","state":"TX","lat":29.307627198000034,"lon":-96.10670736699996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1993-03-18","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A steel truss railroad bridge carrying a single track across the Colorado River at Wharton, Texas, about 1/4 mile west of U.S. Highway 59. It is dated 1903 and was built for the Texas and New Orleans Railroad.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the bridge illustrates the bridge technology that let the Colorado River be spanned and connected Wharton to the national rail network. That connection supported agricultural markets, the arrival of goods and the town's early 20th century prosperity. It is also one of two remaining local resources from the railroad era and one of two historic Colorado River bridges in Wharton.","narrative":"This three-part steel truss railroad bridge crosses the Colorado River at Wharton, Texas, on a northwest-southeast axis. A seven-part Camelback through truss forms the main section, with a six-panel Pratt through truss at each end. Rusticated limestone blocks form the pylons under each span, and a timber pier approach of roughly 100 feet carries the track across farmland on the north side. The date 1903 appears on the upper trusses of the main section. The bridge was built for the Texas and New Orleans Railroad, later bought by Southern Pacific, and it let the line extend service from Houston toward South Texas livestock ranches. The bridge was listed for its role in Wharton's community development. Rail connection opened the town to wider agricultural markets and brought in goods such as lumber, bricks and feed. It is one of two historic Colorado River bridges in Wharton. Although rusted and rarely used, it retains its integrity.","period_of_significance":"1903-1942","architect_builder":"Unknown","architectural_style":"Camelback Through/Pratt Through Truss","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Described as in poor condition, heavily scarred with rust and rarely used; rail service to Wharton was discontinued around 1990.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.513361-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/62/9707/40970762/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/93000123.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000123/0e0c7aae2f-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/93000123/0e0c7aae2f-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 4.0","author":"Larry D. Moore","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Texas_and_New_Orleans_Railroad_Bridge_Wharton.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Larry D. Moore</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Texas_and_New_Orleans_Railroad_Bridge_Wharton.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40970762","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110002551"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/wharton-county/texas-and-new-orleans-railroad-bridge-93000123/"}