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:
“For a parent, it’s hard to recognize the significance of your work when you’re immersed in the mundane details. Few of us, as we run the bath water or spread the peanut butter on the bread, proclaim proudly, “I’m making my contribution to the future of the planet.” But with the exception of global hunger, few jobs in the world of paychecks and promotions compare in significance to the job of parent.”
—Joyce Maynard (20th century)
“History is the interpretation of the significance that the past has for us.”
—Johan Huizinga (1872–1945)
“Of what significance the light of day, if it is not the reflection of an inward dawn?—to what purpose is the veil of night withdrawn, if the morning reveals nothing to the soul? It is merely garish and glaring.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)