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Boom Island Pedestrian Bridge

Hennepin County, Minnesota
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Photos 

Overall elevation view

Photo taken by Matthew Lohry

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Map 

Description 

This beautiful 8-panel pin-connected Pratt through truss bridge originally served as a railroad bridge for transporting trains between Nicollet Island and Boom Island during the days of the sawmill. The bridge was built in 1901, eight years after a fire wiped out the sawmill that existed at that time. This bridge features V-lacing on the top and bottom of the upper chords, as well as the sides of the verticals paralleling the portals. The portal bracing and sway bracing feature large lattice. The bridge's light construction reflects the early railroad days when trains were much lighter than today's monsters. This bridge has been nicely preserved in its original location and currently serves as a pedestrian link between Boom Island Park and Nicollet Island.

Facts 

Overview
Pratt through truss bridge over Back Channel of Mississippi River on Pedestrian trail
Location
Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota
Status
Open to pedestrians
History
Built 1901, Converted to pedestrian usage in 1987
Builders
- Butler-Ryan Co. of St. Paul, Minnesota (Builder)
- Charles Frederick Loweth (Designer)
- R.B. Tweedy (Chief Engineer)
Design
Pratt through truss
Dimensions
Span length: 175.0 ft.
Total length: 175.0 ft.
Deck width: 19.0 ft.
Also called
Wisconsin Central Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+44.99069, -93.26554   (decimal degrees)
44°59'26" N, 93°15'56" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
15/479068/4981950 (zone/easting/northing)
USGS topographic map
Minneapolis South
Inventory number
BH 45221 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

8-panel truss (243)
Built 1901 (283)
Built during 1900s (4,268)
Butler-Ryan Co. (1)
Charles Frederick Loweth (6)
Hennepin County, Minnesota (109)
Laced endposts (74)
Minneapolis, Minnesota (77)
Minnesota (948)
Open to pedestrians (1,959)
Owned by city (3,089)
Pin-connected (1,568)
 Pratt through truss (3,184)
Pratt truss (5,687)
Preserved (662)
R.B. Tweedy (1)
Rail-to-trail (512)
Railroad (4,223)
Span length 175-250 feet (1,489)
Through truss (9,253)
Total length 175-250 feet (2,806)
Truss (23,614)
Wisconsin Central Ltd. (16)

Update Log 

  • February 13, 2013: New photos from John Marvig
  • August 10, 2012: Updated by John Marvig: Added category "railroad"
  • July 27, 2012: Updated by Luke Harden: Added build date, builders, edited span length/wifth, added alt. name. and link to John Week's website
  • December 30, 2010: New photos from Jason Smith
  • May 10, 2010: Added by Matthew Lohry

Sources 

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