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I & M Canal Fox River Aqueduct

La Salle County, Illinois
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Photos 

Looking Northeast, South Side Of Plate Girder Bridge Which Carried The Interurban Line Across The Fox River. Note The Steel-Frame Supports For The Catenary.

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

View photos at Library of Congress

Map 

Description 

Originally built in 1838 to carry the I&M Canal over the Fox River. Rebuilt in 1903 and used for the Illinois Traction System. Now a part of the I&M Canal bike trail. The "ghost" piers to the side used to carry a wagon bridge in the era the aqueduct was active.

Facts 

Overview
I&M Canal aqueduct/IL Traction System spaning the Fox River
Location
Ottawa, La Salle County, Illinois
Status
Open to Foot & Bike Traffic. Aqueduct is dry.
Future prospects
Now part of I&M canal bike trail
History
I&M Canal Aqueduct/Illinois Traction System over the Fox River
Design
Riveted Steel Trough/Deck Plate Girder resting on Stone piers
Dimensions
Total length: 464.0 ft.
Deck width: 18.0 ft.
Also called
Illinois Traction System Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+41.35234, -88.82818   (decimal degrees)
41°21'08" N, 88°49'41" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/347065/4579483 (zone/easting/northing)
USGS topographic map
Ottawa
Inventory number
BH 36912 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Aqueduct (46)
Built 1903 (268)
Built during 1900s (4,247)
Deck girder (1,802)
Fox River (Illinois) (8)
Girder (3,241)
I&M Canal (20)
Illinois (2,500)
 Illinois Terminal Railroad (16)
La Salle County, Illinois (50)
Open to Pedestrians (2,084)
Ottawa, Illinois (4)
Owned by state (9,810)
Plate girder (2,253)
Preserved (652)
Total length 250-500 feet (3,371)

Update Log 

  • October 15, 2011: Updated by Steve Conro: Fixed name, Updated history and stats
  • February 27, 2010: Updated by Kim Harvey: additional HAER photos from HAER IL-46
  • March 29, 2009: Updated by Kim Harvey: added GPS coordinates from terraserver and updated status on the bridge
  • November 24, 2008: Updated by Kim Harvey: added category
  • July 23, 2008: Added by Kim Harvey

Sources 

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Comments 

Ottawa Fox River Bridge
Posted April 9, 2009, by Ron Johnson (mfpd24 [at] yahoo [dot] com)

Those are not "Steel-Frame Supports For The Catenary", they are fairly new and have square lights on them. They are not even over the railroad portion of the bridge, they are over the aqueduct. The only thing left of the railroad bridge are the stone piers in the foreground.

Fox River Bridge
Posted December 28, 2008, by Ron Johnson (mfpd24 [at] yahoo [dot] com)

This is actually part of the Illinois & Michigan canal aqueduct over the Fox River. The Illinois Traction System was abandoned in the 1930s, around the same time as the canal itself. The canal towpath and aqueduct are now part of a biking & hiking trail, and also used by snowmobiles. The I&M canal was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964, and a National Heritage Corridor in 1984. The aqueduct/rail bridge can be found on Champlain St. 2 blocks south of East Norris Dr. (U.S. Rt.6) on the east side of Ottawa. As of Dec.08 there is a large amount of debris piled against the north side, due to flooding in Sept. Directly east of this bridge is the remains of a wood and concrete foot bridge that was partially demolished in the late 1970s. There are also the remnants of several bridges along the route of the I.T.S. in LaSalle County.