Poplar Street Bridge

Infobox_Bridge
bridge_name= Poplar Street Bridge


caption=
official_name= Bernard F. Dickmann Bridge
also_known_as=
carries= 8 lanes of I-55/I-64/I-70/US 40
crosses= Mississippi River
locale= St. Louis, Missouri and East St. Louis, Illinois
maint=
id=
design= steel girder bridge
mainspan= convert|600|ft|m|0
length= convert|2164|ft|m|0
width= convert|104|ft|m|0
clearance=
below= convert|92|ft|m|0
traffic= 120,000
open= 1967
closed=
toll=
map_cue=
map_

map_text=
map_width=
coordinates= coord|38|37|05|N|90|10|59|W|region:US_type:landmark

The Poplar Street Bridge, officially the Bernard F. Dickmann Bridge, completed in 1967, is a convert|647|ft|m|sing=on long (197m) deck girder bridge across the Mississippi River between St. Louis, Missouri and East St. Louis, Illinois. The bridge arrives on the Missouri shore line just south of the Gateway Arch.

Planned just before construction of the Arch, the builders in 1959 were to request that 25 acres of the Gateway Arch property be turned over from the National Park Service for the bridge. The request generated enormous controversy and ultimately convert|2.5|acre|m2 of the Jefferson Expansion National Memorial (which included all of the original platted area of St. Louis when it was acquired in the 1930s and 1940s) was given to the bridge. [ [http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/jeff/adhi1-7.htm Jefferson National Expansion Administrative History by Sharon A. Brown - nps.gov - Retrieved January 22, 2008] ]

Three Interstate Highways and a U.S. Route cross the entire bridge and one Interstate Highway is marked only on the Missouri half, the only quad route concurrency of interstate highways in existence. It is crossed by approximately 120,000 vehicles daily, making it possibly the most heavily used bridge on the river. Some of that load is intended to be diverted to the New Mississippi River Bridge.

Interstate 55, Interstate 64, Interstate 70, and U.S. Route 40 cross the Mississippi on the Poplar Street bridge. U.S. Route 66 was also concurrent over this bridge until 1979, and U.S. 50 was routed over it before the interstates were constructed. According to current construction plans, I-70 will be realigned to cross the river once the New Mississippi River Bridge [cite web|url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/commutingtraffic/story/C16DAE0A7A18CA0B862573FD0013CB4D?OpenDocument|last=Crouch|first=Elisa |title=Blunt, Blagojevich sign agreement on bridge|publisher=stltoday.com|accessdate=2008-02-28] is completed by 2015. [cite web|url=http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/commutingtraffic/story/966887B5A7576DF3862573FB0013930A?OpenDocument|last=Crouch|first=Elisa |title=States reach bridge deal|publisher=stltoday.com|accessdate=2008-02-28]

The east end of the bridge crosses the south end of what was Bloody Island which Robert E. Lee connected to the mainland of Illinois with landfill in the 1850s. During its island days several Missouri politicians fought duels there. [ [http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/education/dueling/political-duels.asp SOS, Missouri - State Archives Education: "Crack of the Pistol: Dueling in 19th Century Missouri" ] ] What was Bloody Island is now a train yard.

Although the bridge's official name honors former St. Louis mayor Bernard F. Dickmann, it is always referred to as the Poplar Street Bridge in common usage, and the majority of St. Louisans are unaware of its official name. The Missouri end of the bridge sits over Poplar Street, and the media started referring to it by that name long before the bridge opened.

See also

*List of crossings of the Upper Mississippi River

References

External links

*Whmc stl photodb|title=Western Historical Manuscript Collection Photo Database |keywords=poplar+street+bridge

Crossings navbox
structure = Bridges
place = Mississippi River
bridge = Poplar Street Bridge
bridge signs =
upstream = Eads Bridge
upstream signs = "St. Louis Metrolink"
downstream = MacArthur Bridge
downstream signs =