The Purple People Bridge – formerly the Newport & Cincinnati Bridge – opened on April 1, 1872, seven years after the end of the Civil War. It was the first railroad bridge spanning the Ohio River between Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky.
 

THE NEWPORT & CINCINNATI BRIDGE

 

The Newport & Cincinnati Bridge was initially owned by the Little Miami Railroad, which had terminal facilities on the Cincinnati side of the river.


 

THE L&N BRIDGE

 

In 1904, the bridge was renamed the L&N (Louisville and Nashville) Railroad Bridge. Shortly thereafter, the west portion of the bridge was improved and repaved to accommodate automobiles.  In the 1940s, streetcar service over the bridge ceased, and the center streetcar track became a pedestrian walkway. The bridge closed to rail traffic in 1987 and this portion of the bridge steadily deteriorated.  After removing the tracks and dismantling the rail approaches, CSX also stopped painting the railroad half of the bridge while the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, which had acquired the automobile portion of the bridge, continued painting this side of the bridge blue, resulting in a blue-and-rust combination bridge during the early 1990s. The L&N Bridge and the railroad itself were acquired by CSX — however the bridge still kept its popular “L&N Bridge” name.

 

 

THE NEWPORT SOUTHBANK BRIDGE

 

On April 19, 2001, it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.  It was also closed permanently to automobiles at that time.

In early 2002, the Kentucky Legislature agreed to spend $4 million to restore and paint the bridge, which was jointly controlled by the state and CSX Railroad. CSX donated its portion of the bridge to Southbank Partners, whereas Kentucky Transportation Cabinet transferred its ownership to the City of Newport. Together, the City and Southbank Partners shortly thereafter created a separate non-profit corporation, The Purple People Bridge Company, formerly the Newport Southbank Bridge Co., and transferred ownership and management of the bridge including its surface-level maintenance


 

THE PURPLE PEOPLE BRIDGE

 

In honor of the bridge’s original 1872, the bridge company hosted a year-long 150th anniversary celebration and officially changed the name of the bridge to the “Purple People Bridge”.