Rating:
3 votes

Mosquito Creek Bridge

Dallas County, Iowa

Photos 

Photo taken by Kevin Skow

Enlarge

BH Photo #295137

Map 

Facts 

Overview
Through truss bridge over Mosquito Creek on 255th Street
Location
Dallas County, Iowa
Status
Intact but closed to all traffic
History
Built ca. 1880; closed 2009
Design
Pratt through truss
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 142.1 ft.
Total length: 144.0 ft.
Deck width: 15.7 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 13.0 ft.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+41.66606, -94.24391   (decimal degrees)
41°39'58" N, 94°14'38" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
15/396444/4613447 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Adel NW
Land survey
T. 79 N., R. 29 W., Sec. 8
Average daily traffic (as of 2012)
20
Inventory numbers
IA 131830 (Iowa bridge number)
BH 13293 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of November 2016)
Sufficiency rating: 15.9 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com

Categories 

19th Century (7,630)
Built during 1880s (2,010)
Closed (2,666)
Dallas County, Iowa (94)
Iowa (6,530)
Mosquito Creek (Tributary of Raccoon River) (5)
One-lane traffic (7,614)
Owned by county (20,859)
 Pin-connected (3,924)
Pratt through truss (5,430)
Pratt truss (9,351)
Span length 125-175 feet (4,236)
Structurally deficient (14,098)
Through truss (15,195)
Total length 125-175 feet (5,938)
Truss (32,980)

Update Log 

  • December 3, 2017: Updated by Christopher Finigan: Added category "Pin-connected"
  • February 6, 2017: New photos from Lee Smith
  • January 15, 2017: New photos from Brian Stockton
  • August 19, 2015: New photos from Kevin Skow
  • June 2, 2015: New photos from Kevin Skow
  • September 26, 2014: Updated by Kevin Skow: Updated stats per contact with the county engineer
  • September 22, 2014: Updated by Ralph Demars: Changed Status
  • September 21, 2014: New photos from Luke
  • February 9, 2012: Updated by Jason Smith: This bridge is a Pratt through truss bridge
  • May 7, 2010: Updated by J.R. Manning: Added Road Name

Sources 

  • J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
  • Jason Smith - flensburg [dot] bridgehunter [dot] av [at] googlemail [dot] com
  • Luke
  • Kevin Skow - weatherbum [at] hotmail [dot] com
  • Brian Stockton
  • Lee Smith - ljsmith_32 [at] hotmail [dot] com
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Comments 

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted February 6, 2017, by Dana and Kay Klein

Lee nice shots! Drone?

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 26, 2014, by Kevin Skow (weatherbum [at] hotmail [dot] com)

I posted a few more close up photos of the bridge that might help you out in narrowing down its build date.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 26, 2014, by Nathan Holth (webmaster [at] historicbridges [dot] org)

1900 is a default date that is often used when the build date is unknown. The county engineer likely was just reading from the inventory and doesn't have a clue when it was really built. However, I don't share Tony's confidence in a ca 1880 date to justify listing it on this website officially. The vertical members look a bit hefty for an 1870s bridge, and without any detail photos of the connections it is not possible for me to see if this bridge has the unusual design details that typify ca. 1880 and older trusses. Cast iron portal bracing knees were used throughout the 1880s. I would suggest a wider possible range than Tony, anywhere from 1880 to 1890.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 26, 2014, by Kevin Skow (weatherbum [at] hotmail [dot] com)

I contacted the Dallas County engineer about the status and future of the bridge. It does not appear like the structure is in any danger of being demolished in the near future. He stated that the bridge was built in 1900 and closed in 2009, so have updated the page for that. I agree with others that it does look older than 1900, but will use the date given by the county.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 23, 2014, by Julie Bowers (jbowerz1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

I thought it was a King bridge as well. Beautiful.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 23, 2014, by Tony Dillon (spansaver [at] hotmail [dot] com)

I changed the date on this beauty to ca. 1880 based on the cast elements in the portal bracing and the overall light build. It could even be from the 1870's.

Could be another King span based on their prominence in this area.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 22, 2014, by Kevin Skow (weatherbum [at] hotmail [dot] com)

Thanks! These old rural bridges are quite fun to photograph.

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 22, 2014, by Royce and Bobette Haley (roycehaley111 [at] yahoo [dot] com)

Some very nice photos!

Mosquito Creek Bridge
Posted September 21, 2014, by Kevin Skow (weatherbum [at] hotmail [dot] com)

Bridge has been closed to traffic for several years now. Structure overall appears solid and unmodified with the exception of strengthening done to some truss members (see photo). Photos taken September 21, 2014.

Webmaster's note: The photos that were here have been incorporated into the main site.