Photos
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Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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3/4 View From Northeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Barrel View From South Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Vertical 3/4 View From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of South End Of East Truss, From East Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of East Truss, From East Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of Connections Of West Truss, From East Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of Connections Of West Truss, From East Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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North Pier, From South Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
Historical American Engineering Record Report - 1995
Taken from the report written by Geoffrey H. Goldberg, EngineerThe availability of steel for domestic purposes like bridge building was severely limited during World War II. Most of the counties of Iowa, including Crawford County, turned to timber to fulfill their short-span bridge construction needs. In May of 1945, however, heavy flooding washed out 27 bridges and culverts throughout the county. It was decided to build replacement spans using steel. The Des Moines Steel Company was hired to design and fabricate the bridges. Forced to economize with material they turned to a bridge form that was popular in the 1860s and 1870s: the bowstring arch-truss. Although lacking the lateral stability of later bridge forms, the bowstring offered outstanding structural efficiency. During the period of the 1860s and 1870s thousands of bowstring arch-trusses were built throughout the nation. In a time of national crisis this once popular bridge form again supplied the solution. The Nishnabotna bridge is an excellent example of this series of bridges built during the war.
Facts
- Overview
- Bowstring pony truss bridge over Nishnabotna Creek on 310th Street near Manilla
- Location
- Manilla, Crawford County, Iowa
- Status
- Status unknown
- History
- Built 1945
- Builder
- - Des Moines Steel Co.
- Design
- Bowstring pony truss
- Dimensions
-
Total length: 77 ft.
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +41.86487, -95.26657 (decimal degrees)
41°51'54" N, 95°15'60" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 15/311885/4637256 (zone/easting/northing)
- USGS topographic map
- Defiance
- Inventory number
- BH 37265 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Sources
- J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
- HAER IA-48 - Nishnabotna River Bridge