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Pere Marquette - Manistee River High Bridge

Manistee County, Michigan
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Map 

Description 

This bridge was built in 1889 for the Chicago & West Michigan Railway, which was later purchased and became a part of the Pere Marquette Railroad's main line from Grand Rapids to Traverse City. In 1911, under PM ownership, the bridge underwent structural reinforcing to double its load capacity. In 1947 the line was acquired by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. Eight years later, the C&O finished their acquisition of the parallel route belonging to the PM-controlled Manistee & Northeastern Railroad, having already shifted all traffic onto that route. No longer needed by the railroad, the bridge was dismantled in the autumn of 1955. The site is now a state park.

When built, it was the highest rail bridge in Michigan hence it's name. Removed by the C&O Railroad in 1955 in favor of an alternate route. Footings are still visible. At one time only bridge nearby so it was used by locals to walk across.

Facts 

Overview
Lost Bridge over Manistee River on former Pere Marquette Railroad in Wellston
Location
Wellston, Manistee County, Michigan
Status
Lost
History
Built 1889; Removed 1955
Builder
- Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1911 Reinforcements)
Railroads
- Chesapeake & Ohio Railway (C&O; CO)
- Pere Marquette Railroad (PM)
Design
Mix of deck truss and other building materials.
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 150.0 ft.
Total length: 1,710.0 ft.
Deck width: 8.0 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+44.27016, -86.00763   (decimal degrees)
44°16'13" N, 86°00'27" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/579200/4902358 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Brethren
Elevation
211 ft. above sea level
Inventory number
BH 42568 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

19th Century (6,139)
Built 1889 (184)
Built during 1880s (1,633)
Chesapeake & Ohio Railway (63)
Deck girder (4,424)
Deck truss (1,493)
Girder (7,813)
Lost (18,478)
Lost 1955 (38)
Lost during 1950s (381)
Manistee County, Michigan (13)
 Michigan (873)
Pere Marquette Railroad (23)
Pin-connected (3,135)
Plate girder (6,002)
Railroad (12,986)
Span length 125-175 feet (3,745)
Tall Bridges (308)
Total length 1000-2500 feet (1,642)
Truss (29,327)
Wellston, Michigan area (1)
Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Co. (122)

Update Log 

  • April 21, 2017: Updated by Dave King: Added images
  • October 18, 2014: Updated by Brian Parkinson: Historical photos and discription added.
  • June 20, 2010: New photo from James Norwood
  • May 19, 2009: Updated by James Norwood
  • May 17, 2009: Added by James Norwood

Sources 

  • James Norwood
  • Michigan Railroads - Article.pdf
  • Brian Parkinson - railstoruin [at] yahoo [dot] com
  • Dave King - DKinghawkfan [at] hotmail [dot] com
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Comments 

Pere Marquette Railroad High Bridge
Posted May 17, 2009, by Gene McCluney (mccluney [at] sbcglobal [dot] net)

There is no "through" truss in this bridge. There is a "deck" truss though.