Robert Thompson

"Pony truss"? Looks like a typical UCEB to me...

ARMSTRONG Creek. Mea Culpa.

http://www.friendsoftheredbridge.com/

From the website:

"The Armstrong Creek Bridge is a steel, Pratt pony truss bridge located in Armstrong Creek Township, Forest County Wisconsin. Erected in 1908, the bridge carried Old 101 Road over the Armstrong Creek, until the roadway was re-routed just west of the bridge, in the 1940s. The Armstrong Creek Bridge was then closed to automobile traffic, but continues to serve pedestrians.

DESCRIPTION

The Armstrong Creek Bridge crosses Armstrong Creek on the edge of the Nicolet National Forest. Old 101 Road (also called Forest Road 2371), a quiet, two-lane roadway, passes just west of the bridge. Picnic tables, placed near the bridge in 1992, are sheltered by the mature, deciduous and coniferous trees that help create the tranquil setting. The Armstrong Creek Bridge is a three-span structure. The central span is a steel, pin- connected, Pratt pony truss that is 50 feet long. The flanking, steel deck girder approach spans are each 24 feet long. The bridge deck is 16 feet wide. The north end of the bridge rests on riveted, metal tube pylons, while the south end is set on a poured concrete abutment.

The Pratt trusses are composed of four panels, each of which measures 12.5 feet. The panels on either end of each truss display full-slope end posts. The end posts and top chords appear to be double upright channels with a cover plate. An upright channel joined to a rectangular eyebar forms each bottom chord. The vertical members are composed of double, back-to-back angles with v-lacing, and the counters consist of pairs of crossing, cylindrical rods.

Steel floor beams and stringers support the wooden planks that serve as a deck on the west half of the bridge. Narrow metal guardrails run along the west truss and down the middle of the bridge, flanking the deck. On the east half of the bridge, the floor beams and stringers are exposed.

ALTERATIONS

In 1992, the Wisconsin Conservation Corps rehabilitated the Armstrong Creek Bridge, then a pedestrian bridge. Wooden planks were laid on the west half of the floor system, and the guardrails were installed. The loss of the original deck does alter the appearance of the bridge, but does not affect the high degree of integrity displayed by the Pratt trusses and deck girders that form the structure. It is the structure that confers the engineering significance that makes the Armstrong Creek Bridge eligible for the National Register.

The bridge is proposed for removal in 2007 to accommodate the realignment of Old 101 Road. New piers and abutments will be constructed, and the bridge reinstalled, placing the south end of the structure approximately 20 feet east of its original location."

OK, Kitchenguy.... wanna race to document this one? LOL

R.K. Thompson

Um, what is up with THAT? Did it start as a truss bridge, and was later reinforced with an arch?

Actually, the Michigan Street Bridge is a mile further north.

My guess is that the central (turntable) pier is masonry, but that it began to deteriorate and was encased in steel plate. Comments?

Spring is about to arrive, along with road trips to catalog bridges.

I suddenly realized that there were few photos of the Sturgeon Bay bridges, six miles from me. I also discovered there was no posting for the recently completed Oregon Street Bridge.

Enjoy.

I was at an event just south of Munfordville back in 2006 and crossed this bridge many times. I wish I'd taken some pictures.

Wow. It's an interesting mixture of impressive engineering and modern butt-uglyness. I'm both intrigued and repelled.

Not trying to pick a fight, but...

I don't think the St. Joseph River is actually "navigable" at this point. I define navigable as having features that allow passage of vessels (dredged channels, locks, high-clearance bridges or movable bridges... or under the jurisdiction of the US Coast Guard for navigational purposes). At this location, the river does not have these features.

Tell me about it. I just wiped out my nice Fuji with image stabilization in December. But I have a track record of wiping out a camera every year or two, because of the things I do in my spare time.

RKT

Found online:

>>>CALTRANS AWARDS CONTRACT FOR NEW RIO VISTA FERRY

Solano – The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) today announced the award

of a contract to build a new Real McCoy (Ryer Island Ferry). The $4.3 million contract was

awarded to Nicols Brothers, a boat building company located in Freeland, Washington.

Caltrans anticipates having the new vessel in operation by summer 2010. Upon delivery the new

vessel will continue to provide non-stop service from State Route 84 in Rio Vista to Ryer Island

in Solano County.<<<

Nichols Brothers is a long-established shipbuilder; they'll make 'em a nice boat.

Is it partially collapsed? I'm seeing vertical steel at the right.... otherwise, how do you get over the knuckle in the road?

Excellent catch!

The span nearest the Indiana shore may have been a swing span (round pier, with span cantilevered from it). Any turning mechanism that may have existed has been removed and replaced with cribbing.