Significance
The three bridges are the only ones of their type still extant in Lee County, Illinois. They are also significant for their association with the Illinois Central Railroad and its beginnings. With the arrival of the Illinois Central Railroad to Dixon, business and industry followed allowing Dixon to grow and prosper. The increase in population in the Dixon area over many years was a direct result of the arrival of the ICRR. There was an attempt by the city government to tear down the arches but the local citizens protested and the bridges were saved. The three bridges were listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, as part of the same listing, on December 2, 1987.
Read more about this topic: Illinois Central Stone Arch Railroad Bridges
Famous quotes containing the word significance:
“To grasp the full significance of life is the actor’s duty, to interpret it is his problem, and to express it his dedication.”
—Marlon Brando (b. 1924)
“The hysterical find too much significance in things. The depressed find too little.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)
“Politics is not an end, but a means. It is not a product, but a process. It is the art of government. Like other values it has its counterfeits. So much emphasis has been placed upon the false that the significance of the true has been obscured and politics has come to convey the meaning of crafty and cunning selfishness, instead of candid and sincere service.”
—Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)