Agree COMPLETELY Tony....soooo dumb
It never ceases to amaze me that millions of taxpayers dollars are spent to replace a bridge that could be rehabbed for a fraction of that cost. If we were talking about a span that carried hundreds of cars a day it might be one thing... But for an ADT of 30?!? Really?
Visited today - interesting having seen and photographed this in it's original spot in 2017, and it's final resting spot (new UCEB plaque says 2018) just 100 yards away now in the field...or....2nd to last resting spot? Salvage yard bound? Pretty beat up now with move, hard to imagine it re-purposed somewhere, but who knows?
We interrupt the devastating news of bridge after bridge being destroyed by flooding to bring you some good news.
This bridge was placed on dry land instead of being demolished when it was replaced. I do not know what the future holds for this bridge, but for right now it appears to be extant.
This bridge might not be as lost as we think. It was reportedly placed on the ground intact nearby. A photograph has surfaced on Facebook showing the bridge sitting on dry land and overgrown with weeds. It might still be hiding in the trees if somebody wants to do a field check.
Hi Priscilla:
Thanks for the update. I figured that this bridge would not be here much longer. Wilson County is now nearly devoid of historic highway bridges.
This bridge has been replaced.
Tony:
I have often thought that it looked a bit like a Western Bridge Co. plaque.
I have never been able to confirm any Stupp Brothers bridges in Kansas but I would not be too surprised if they built a few. They were working just across the state line in Missouri so it is conceivable that they might have wanted to expand their area of operations in to Kansas. I just don't know if they actually did or not.
Doesn't that kinda look like a Stupp Bros. or Western Plaque Robert!
Thanks for doing a field visit.
No, I didn't see any in the area, this one is still very much open, maybe a little bit more time left than expected .....
Any sign of new bridge construction? This one probably does not have much time left.
This bridge is now doomed as per the KHRI link above. Looks like this bridge will join the nearby Bull's Ford Bridge in the "lost" category.
In the 1980s, Wilson County had a great collection of Marsh arch and metal truss bridges. Every Marsh arch in the county has been demolished. When this bridge is demolished, it will likely be the last remaining truss bridge in the county (save for one or two abandoned ones that were transferred to private landowners).
The county will still retain three railroad truss bridges. By contrast, Montgomery County immediately to the south retains a great collection of historic bridges, although many of them are abandoned.
The KSHS page shows that this bridge once had at least one plaque. Unfortunately there is no close-up photo that would indicate what the plaque says.
http://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?tab=details&in=205-0000-...
One can only hope they have something in mind. It probably took 2 cranes to pull it off the river... and that ain't cheap!