"Battle of the Bridge" (Rock Island Arsenal: Inside the Gates Series)

Battle of the Bridge, Rock Island Arsenal: Inside the Gates: It's the story of a bridge, a riverboat, and a shared page in history.

     Please click on the link to see the story. 
     Back in 1856, when the first Railroad Bridge to cross the Mississippi opened crossing from Rock Island, Illinois to Davenport, Iowa, it marked an amazing moment in American transportation history.  But the Railroad was in direct competition with Riverboats for business.  So not everyone was happy about it.
     So was there a conspiracy to destroy the bridge, nobody knows for sure, but it sure looks that way.
     Watch the story and see what you think.
     In next week's edition, our special WHBF TV series continues as the battle moves from the river to the courtroom and launches a man named Lincoln into the national spotlight.
     You can catch a new edition of "Rock Island Arsenal: Inside the Gates" every Thursday night at 10pm on CBS4 News.

1st RR Bridge Ever Built Across the Mississippi

Tomorrow night's episode of "Rock Island Arsenal:  Inside the Gates" features the 1st RR bridge to ever cross the Mississippi...but was there a conspiracy to destroy it?  You decide Thursday night on CBS4's Ten at Ten News.
By the way, longtime Quad Citians may recognize the name "Effie Afton" as the name of a riverboat restaurant which used to be docked at the site where Rock Island's current Schwiebert Park is located...a lot of folks may know it as the 'Jumer's Food Boat'...that boat according to the Effie Afton Restaurant webpage was originally called the "Mateur" but was later re-named the Effie Afton.  It's not the orginal Effie Afton.
The orginal Effie Afton was destroyed by fire and sank to the bottom of the Mississippi...the original Effie Afton's bell sits in the Rock Island Arsenal's Museum.
Find out why the Effie Afton, and the 1st RR Bridge built across the Mississippi share a page in history Thursday night on CBS4's Ten at Ten News, in this week's edition of "Rock Island Arsenal: Inside the Gates".

Arsenal Series to Debut on CBS4 on 6/14/12

"Rock Island Arsenal: Inside the Gates": A new CBS4 Thursday Night Series debuts this Thursday night (6/14/12) on 10 @ 10.  The first episode is on the Col. Davenport House. Photojournalist Mike Colon and I have been teaming up for months behind the scenes, finally it will debut! :)  Click on the promo above to see a preview of our first story.