Upper Paris Bridge

Photos 

General View of West Side Looking East

Photo by Bruce A. Harms and Rob Tucher, LBA; Summer 1996, for HAER

View photos at Library of Congress

Map 

History 

Description: This unusual Whipple truss spans the Wapsipinicon River in northern Linn County. It was built in 1879 by the Ohio-based Canton Wrought Iron Bridge Company for $3,400. The timber and stone substructure was constructed by Cloyston and Wood for $1564.72. The bridge is a fairly rare example of a double-intersection Pratt truss, also known as a "Whipple" truss, which was first developed by Squire Whipple, an early American engineer, in 1847. Additional construction documentation for this long-span truss do not exist in county records. Barring a minor replacement, the aesthetically striking Upper Paris Bridge carries intermittent vehicular traffic in its rural setting. The Upper Paris Bridge is distinguished as a well-preserved, large-scale example of a Whipple truss. Basically a Pratt with diagonals that extent over two panels, the Whipple truss was seldom employed for wagon trusses in the state. Few were ever erected and fewer yet remain today. This structure is one of only eight pin-connected Whipple through trusses remaining in Iowa and is the longest of eight. For its exceeding rare use of wrought iron components, its rare truss configuration, and its overall length, the Upper Paris Bridge is a structurally significant wagon crossing in Iowa.

Facts 

Overview

Whipple through truss bridge over Wapsipinicon River on Sutton Road near Paris

Location

Linn County, Iowa

Status

Open to traffic

History

Built 1879; rehabilitated 1987

Builder

- Wrought Iron Bridge Co. of Canton, Ohio

Design

Whipple through truss

"This Whipple through truss is structurally significant wagon crossing and a rare example of a double-intersection Pratt truss with the rare use of wrought iron components along with its truss configuration (diagonals extending over two panels). It is one of only eight pin-connected Whipple through trusses remaining in Iowa and is the longest of the eight.

"This document was prepared as part of the Iowa Historic Bridges Recording Project performed durng the Summer of 1995 by the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). The project was sponsored by the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT). Preliminary research on this bridge was performed by Clayton B. Fraser of Fraserdesign, Loveland, CO."

Historians: Richard Vidutis, Jim Hippen
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Dimensions

Length of largest span: 158.1 ft.
Total length: 208.0 ft.
Deck width: 14.8 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 11.1 ft.

Recognition

Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on May 15, 1998

Also called

Sutton Road Bridge

Approximate latitude, longitude

+42.24417, -91.58426   (decimal degrees)
42°14'39" N, 91°35'03" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")

Approximate UTM coordinates

15/616800/4677856 (zone/easting/northing)

Quadrangle map:

Central City

Land survey

T. 86 N., R. 6 W., Sec. 19

Inventory numbers

IA 223020 (Iowa bridge number)
NRHP 98000532 (National Register of Historic Places reference number)
BH 13855 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Inspection (as of 06/2012)

Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Poor (4 out of 9)
Appraisal: Structurally deficient
Sufficiency rating: 17.0 (out of 100)

Average daily traffic (as of 2013)

130

Categories 

Update Log 

• February 24, 2015: New photos from Dave King
• September 5, 2013: New photo from Dave King
• August 31, 2011: New photos from Jason Smith
• December 18, 2008: Essay added by Quinn Phelan
• September 10, 2008: New photos from J.R. Manning

Sources 

• HAER IA-83 - Upper Paris Bridge
• J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
• Quinn Phelan - qphelan [at] earthlink [dot] net
• Jason Smith - flensburg [dot] bridgehunter [dot] av [at] googlemail [dot] com
• Dave King - DKinghawkfan [at] hotmail [dot] com

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