Rating:
4 votes

Big Bull Creek Bridge

Miami County, Kansas
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Photos 

Photo taken by Robert Elder

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Map 

Street View 

View Uglybridges.com report

Facts 

Overview
Open-spandrel concrete arch bridge over Big Bull Creek on Old K.C. Road in Paola.
Location
Paola, Miami County, Kansas
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1936, Rehabilitated 2009-2010.
Design
Five span, open spandrel concrete arch
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 129.9 ft.
Total length: 494.0 ft.
Deck width: 23.9 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+38.56185, -94.88398   (decimal degrees)
38°33'43" N, 94°53'02" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
15/335855/4269839 (zone/easting/northing)
USGS topographic map
Paola West
Inventory numbers
KS 000000000610587 (Kansas local bridge number on the National Bridge Inventory)
BH 18105 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection (as of 11/2011)
Deck condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Very Good (8 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 68.2 (out of 100)
Average daily traffic (as of 2011)
4,479

Categories 

Arch (9,419)
Built 1936 (746)
Built during 1930s (8,551)
Deck arch (8,701)
Have street view (9,896)
Kansas (2,280)
Miami County, Kansas (67)
 Open (28,314)
Open-spandrel arch (582)
Owned by county (16,489)
Paola, Kansas (2)
Span length 125-175 feet (2,954)
Structurally deficient (16,680)
Total length 250-500 feet (3,371)

Update Log 

  • July 16, 2010: New photos from Ruth Reynolds
  • March 8, 2010: Updated by Robert Elder: Added Street View link
  • January 21, 2010: Updated by Robert Elder: Adjusted GPS Coordinates
  • January 19, 2010: Updated by Robert Elder: Edited History, Design, Design Description, and Number of Main Spans.
  • November 16, 2008: Updated by Rick Mattioni: Bidge location updated.
  • February 27, 2008: Updated by Robert Elder: Updated "Overview" and "Design"

Sources 

  • Robert Elder - robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com
  • Rick Mattioni
  • Ruth Reynolds - ruthmusic [at] yahoo [dot] com
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Comments 

Big Bull Creek Bridge
Posted July 17, 2010, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

This bridge used to be nearly impossible to photograph because it was surrounded by dense underbrush. Even in the winter, the bridge was mostly obscured.

I am glad that the brush was cleared away when this bridge was rehabilitated. Now the arches of the bridge can actually be seen.

Big Bull Creek Bridge
Posted July 4, 2010, by Ruth Reynolds (ruthmusic [at] yahoo [dot] com)

The bridge has been reopened. The deck/sides of the bridge look like an UCEB, but the open spandrel arches underneath were preserved. I'll try to get up there and take pictures to post soon.

Big Bull Creek Bridge
Posted January 19, 2010, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

After further review...

I have found an article that discusses the rehab project. It appears that the substructure will be retained.

http://www.republic-online.com/200904222596/news/miami-county-news/bull-creek-bridge-project-much-like-a-ladder.html

The bridge will undoubtedly lose some historic integrity, but from a preservation standpoint, this is certainly a better alternative to being replaced completely.

Big Bull Creek Bridge
Posted January 19, 2010, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

This bridge is undergoing an extensive rehabilitation and redecking. I am hoping that rehab. means that the substructure will be retained. Any further details on this project would be welcome. The Big Bull Creek Bridge may be the only open-spandrel bridge in Miami County, which has an impressive collection of historic bridges.

Big Bull Creek Bridge
Posted February 10, 2007, by Robert Elder (Bass-tbn [at] ku [dot] edu)

I am relatively confident that these photos are of the same bridge as #610587 but I am not completely certain.

The bridge in this picture is located on Old KC Road (Old US 169) near the southern city limits of Paola, Kansas. This would be about 4 miles south and 11.1 miles west of Louisburg. The photographed bridge is a five span open-spandrel concrete bridge which crosses Bull Creek as well as a railroad line. Because this bridge is surrounded by overgrowth it is almost impossible to photograph or view from any direction. These photos were taken in November of 2004. If anybody knows if this bridge is or is not #610587 that would be great.