- Old St. Charles Bridge
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Old St. Charles Bridge Crosses Missouri River Locale St. Louis County and St. Charles County in Missouri Design Truss bridge Total length 875.7 m (2,873 ft) Width 6.10 m (20 ft) Longest span 128.0 m (420 ft) Opened 1904 Closed 1998 Coordinates 38°47′00″N 90°28′36″W / 38.7833333°N 90.47667°W The Old St. Charles Bridge once connected St. Louis County to the city of St. Charles.
History
Construction on the bridge began in August, 1902 with the sinking of the piers. Workers who worked inside the piers were called sandhogs. They worked one hour at a time twice a day inside the piers. One worker died as a result of the bends.
Progress on the bridge was slow for several reasons. Shipments of raw materials including lumber and steel were delayed. Inclement weather threatened work stoppages on several occasions. A dispute developed over the right-of-way needed for construction that had to be settled in court. And finally, raw materials had to be stored on the St. Louis County side due to the lack of available space in St. Charles. This forced workers to ferry materials and supplies across the river when needed on the St. Charles side.
Construction was completed in the spring of 1904 in time for the world's fair in St. Louis. The bridge was a combination highway and electric railroad crossing. It was operated as toll by the St. Charles and St. Louis County Bridge Company until December, 1931. At that time it was incorporated in the state highway system as part of U.S. Route 40. Tolls and trolleys ceased in January, 1932.
In June 1959, the bridge was redesignated as part of Route 115 after a new U.S. Route 40 bridge opened that would later become part of Interstate 70. The bridge remained part of SR-115 until it was replaced by the Discovery Bridge. It was closed to traffic in 1992 and demolished in 1998.[1]
See also
References
Crossings of the Missouri River Upstream
Blanchette Memorial Bridge
Old St. Charles Bridge
(demolished)Downstream
Wabash Bridge
Norfolk Southern RailwayBridges, tunnels, and viaducts in Greater St Louis Bridges Eads Bridge • Poplar Street Bridge • New Mississippi River Bridge • McKinley Bridge • Martin Luther King Bridge • Merchants Bridge • Chain of Rocks Bridge • New Chain of Rocks Bridge • Lewis Bridge • Clark Bridge • Bellefontaine Bridge • MacArthur Bridge • Jefferson Barracks Bridge • Discovery Bridge • Wabash Bridge • Old St. Charles Bridge (now demolished) • Blanchette Memorial Bridge • Veterans Memorial Bridge • Daniel Boone Bridge • Washington Bridge • Bellerive BridgeTunnels Lindbergh Boulevard Tunnel • St. Louis Freight Tunnel • Tucker Boulevard Tunnel (now disused)Viaducts Tucker Boulevard Viaduct • Grand Boulevard Viaduct • Jefferson Avenue Viaduct • 18th Street Viaduct • 14th Street Viaduct • Kingshighway Boulevard Viaduct • South Kingshighway Boulevard Viaduct • Hampton Avenue Viaduct • Poplar Street Rail Viaduct • Lesperance Street Rail Viaduct • Westbelt Rail ViaductOperators Categories:- Transportation in Greater St. Louis
- Bridges on the U.S. Highway System
- Bridges in Greater St. Louis
- Bridges in St. Louis County, Missouri
- Bridges in St. Charles County, Missouri
- Bridges completed in 1904
- Demolished bridges in the United States
- Buildings and structures demolished in 1998
- Road bridges in Missouri
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