The Bell Crossing

The “Bell Crossing”, a few kilometres southeast of town used to be on the main road from Rivers to Brandon.

It was a dangerous crossing where the railway line curves and enters Grant’s Cut. Because of the curve and the cut, road traffic didn’t have a good view of oncoming east-bound trains. To solve that problem, just to the east side of the crossing there was a post about twelve feet high which consisted of a steel pipe about six inches in diameter. Near the top were cross arms similar to the cross arms seen at rail crossings today. But above the arms on the top of the post there was a large steel bell. This very loud bell was activated by oncoming trains just as signal lights are activated today.

In the summer of 1938 an overhead bridge was built just a few yards to the west of the crossing so the crossing was no longer needed and the bell was removed. In the 1954 Highway 25 was completed and it became the main road from Rivers to Brandon and points to the south and east.     







Video



Train Tracks Story....

http://www.virtualmanitoba.com/riverdale/traintracks/p32.html



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