Historic Bridges of the U.S. | Vienna Swinging Bridge

Photos

1960: Side view

These two black-and-white photos show the bridge in 1960.

Collection R1015 (Robert L. Elgin photograph collection), Western Historical Manuscript Collection-Rolla, University of Missouri-Rolla. Reproduced with permission of the Western Historical Manuscript Collection-Rolla. (Thanks to Paul Boudreau and Dr.

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1960: Deck view

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1981: Deck view

By 1981, the metal siding had been removed from the wooden towers and a low-water ford had been installed for vehicles exceeding the strict 5,000 pound weight limit.

These color photos were taken by Dr. Mark C. Stauter, July 1981. Reproduced by permission.

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1981 overview

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1981 side view

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The scene today

These photos were taken by the webmaster on Nov. 19, 2006. On the right (facing east) is the modern bridge and the left is the site of the low-water ford.

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Southeast anchor

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Remaining cable

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East abutment

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Northwest anchor

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West abutment

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Remains of wooden tower

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Looking inside the tower

Map

Vicinity map

Map links:

Facts

Overview: Lost suspension bridge over Maries River on CR 213 (Ball Park Road) northwest of Vienna
Location: Maries County, Missouri
Status: Destroyed by flooding
History: Built 1930 by Joseph Dice; bypassed by new bridge 1993; destroyed by flash flood in 1998(?)
Builder: - Joseph Dice
Design: Wire suspension
Dimensions: Total length: 312.0 ft.
Deck width: 12.1 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude: +38.20176, -91.97756 (decimal degrees)
38°12'06" N, 91°58'39" W (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates: 15/589521/4228695 (zone/easting/northing)
Land survey: T. 40 N., R. 10 W., Sec. 24
USGS topographic map: Vienna
Inventory numbers: MO 063-029003.0 (Missouri off-system bridge number)
BH 21988 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection (as of 02/1991): Deck condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Appraisal: Structurally deficient
Sufficiency rating: 23.0 (out of 100)
Average daily traffic (as of 1989): 100

Update Log

December 7, 2006: Posted historic photos with the help of Paul Boudreau and Mark C. Stauter

Sources

Paul Boudreau - paboudreau [at] mchsi [dot] com
Mark C. Stauter - mstauter [at] umr [dot] edu
Missouri Historic Bridge Inventory

Comments

Vienna Swinging Bridge

Posted March 6, 2008, by KImberly Varis (kim_varis1 [at] hotmail [dot] com)

I grew up swimming and fishing at this spot.I even drove a car for the first time across the swinging bridge!I am truely sad to see that it's gone. I haven't been home to Vienna in over thirteen years! It's hard to imagine it any different than it was when I left. Nothing lasts forever, not even bridges!