Compton Junction Bridge
Facts
- Overview
- Through truss bridge over Marmaton River on CR 229 (Old US 71) north of Compton Junction
- Location
- Vernon County, Missouri
- Status
- Open to traffic
- History
- Built 1925
- Builder
- - R.H. Harper Construction Co. (Contractor)
- Design
- Riveted, 7-panel Pratt through truss
- Dimensions
-
Length of largest span: 140.0 ft.
Total length: 394.9 ft.
Deck width: 20.0 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 15.3 ft.
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +37.92285, -94.35794 (decimal degrees)
37°55'22" N, 94°21'29" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 15/380648/4198124 (zone/easting/northing)
- Land survey
- T. 36 N., R. 31 W., Sec. 9
- USGS topographic map
- Horton
- Inventory numbers
- MO 108-229001.3 (Missouri off-system bridge number)
MONBI 19673 (Missouri bridge number on the National Bridge Inventory)
BH 22747 (Bridgehunter.com ID) - Inspection (as of 02/2010)
- Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Appraisal: Structurally deficient
Sufficiency rating: 46.0 (out of 100) - Average daily traffic (as of 2010)
- 35
Sources
- David Backlin - us71 [at] cox [dot] net
- Missouri Historic Bridge Inventory
Comments
A 1920's Missouri plat book (link below) indicates that there was originally an even older (gravel road) alignment of US 71 to the east of the paved alignment that crossed the Compton Junction Bridge. On that older, original aligment, US 71 would have crossed the Marmaton River a few miles to the north/northeast of the Compton Junction Bridge. I have visited that location a few times, and the old bridge washed away more than 20 years ago (I would guess 30-40 years ago). It was a through truss bridge, since part of the truss span is still visible in the river in 2009 (I recall more of it being visible 20 years ago). At this location, the original alignment of US 71 was located to the immediate east of the Missouri & Northern Arkansas railroad line (which is still there today, along with its own bridge crossing the river). The gravel road that approached this location from the south is still largely drive-able (although big mud holes after rain) all the way to the location of the old bridge. From the north, such road is all overgrown, but I was able to walk down to the location of the old bridge in the early 90's.
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/mo/vernon/compton-jct/