The Arizona and California Railway built its main line between 1903 and 1910, creating a shorter connection between Phoenix and the Santa Fe Railway’s transcontinental route across the Mojave Desert. The railroad also provided transportation for mining districts, agricultural settlements, and communities along the lower Colorado River.[1][2]
Construction proceeded westward from A&C Junction—later renamed Matthie—near Wickenburg, Arizona. The tracks passed through Aguila, Salome, and Bouse before reaching Parker in June 1907. The Colorado River remained a major obstacle between the advancing railroad and its intended connection with the Santa Fe in California.[1][2]
In March 1908, Congress granted the Arizona and California Railway a right-of-way through the Colorado River Indian Reservation. The legislation also provided land for station grounds, terminals, and related railroad facilities.[3] The company completed its bridge across the Colorado River near Parker in June 1908.[1][2]
Steel through-truss spans carried the track across the river’s main channel, while wooden trestles supported the approaches across the adjoining floodplain. The structure created the first fixed railroad crossing of the Colorado River in the Parker area and allowed construction to continue westward through Vidal, Rice, and other remote Mojave Desert stations.[1][4]
The tracks reached Cadiz on June 10, 1910, connecting with the Santa Fe main line between Barstow and Needles. Regular service began July 1. The completed route shortened rail travel between Phoenix and Southern California while providing a practical means of transporting passengers, livestock, agricultural products, mining supplies, and ore.[1][2]
The railroad also played an important role in Parker’s establishment. Congress authorized the Parker townsite on April 30, 1908, and the secretary of the interior formally established it on June 10. Capt. William Strover surveyed the original townsite between January 7 and March 31, 1909. Parker subsequently developed around its railway station, terminal facilities, and strategic river crossing.[3]
In 1911, the Arizona and California Railway was consolidated into the California, Arizona and Santa Fe Railway, another Santa Fe subsidiary. Passenger service ended in October 1955, but freight operations continued. The modern Arizona and California Railroad assumed operation of the route in 1991 and established its headquarters in Parker.[1][2][5]
A fire damaged the bridge’s wooden approach, ties, and track structure on September 14, 2019, temporarily closing the line.[6] Repair crews returned the crossing to service approximately eight days later. More than a century after its completion, the Parker railroad bridge remains an active transportation link between Arizona and California.
References
- David F. Myrick, Santa Fe to Phoenix, Railroads of Arizona, vol. 5 (Berkeley and Wilton, California: Signature Press, 2001). Bibliographic record.
- Gregg Wilkerson and Larry M. Vredenburgh, “Railroads and Mining in the Mojave Desert and Southwestern Great Basin, California and Nevada,” 2024 Desert Symposium Field Guide and Proceedings (2024), 47–70.
- “Town Snapshot: Parker—The Western Gateway of Arizona,” League of Arizona Cities and Towns.
- “Arizona and California Railroad Bridge,” Arizona Memory Project.
- Arizona and California Railroad, Genesee & Wyoming.
- “Bridge Fire Temporarily Severs Arizona & California Railroad,” Railfan & Railroad, September 16, 2019.