Rating:
7 votes

Conrail - Possum Trot Bridge

Vermilion County, Illinois

Photos 

Photo taken ca. 1985

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View this photo at petelit.com

BH Photo #272889

Map 

Street View 

Video 

View from the deck, October 2006

Play video on YouTube

Facts 

Overview
Abandoned Deck girder bridge over Middle Fork Vermilion River on former Conrail Railroad west of Danville
Location
Vermilion County, Illinois
Status
Abandoned
Future prospects
Bridge is planned to become part of the 24.5 mile Urbana to Danville Kickapoo bike trail and be converted to a pedestrian bridge.
History
Built 1921 for the Peoria and Eastern Railroad, abandoned ca. 1990's
Railroads
- Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway (CCC&StL; Big 4)
- Conrail (CR)
- New York Central Railroad (NYC)
- Penn Central Railroad (PC)
- Peoria & Eastern Railroad (P&E)
Design
Deck plate girder
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 100.0 ft.
Total length: 1,280.0 ft.
Deck width: 10.0 ft.
Also called
NYC - Possum Trot Bridge
P&E - Possum Trot Bridge
Big Four - Possum Trot Bridge
PC - Possum Trot Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+40.11865, -87.72849   (decimal degrees)
40°07'07" N, 87°43'43" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/437923/4441180 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Danville SW
Inventory number
BH 43972 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Abandoned (3,410)
Available for reuse (223)
Built 1921 (552)
Built during 1920s (9,662)
Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago & St. Louis Railway (117)
Conrail (1,167)
Deck girder (5,316)
Girder (9,507)
Have street view (25,851)
Illinois (4,516)
Middle Fork Vermilion River (11)
 New York Central Railroad (609)
Owned by county (20,215)
Penn Central Railroad (910)
Peoria & Eastern Railroad (15)
Plate girder (7,305)
Railroad (14,815)
Span length 100-125 feet (4,279)
Steel Trestle (151)
Tall Bridges (319)
Total length 1000-2500 feet (1,759)
Vermilion County, Illinois (117)

Update Log 

  • July 24, 2012: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
  • February 4, 2012: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
  • February 2, 2012: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
  • May 12, 2010: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
  • April 13, 2010: New Street View added by Craig Philpott
  • April 13, 2010: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
  • February 6, 2010: New video from Jacob P. Bernard
  • January 30, 2010: Added by Jacob P. Bernard

Related Bridges 

Sources 

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Comments 

Middle Fork River Trestle
Posted February 4, 2010, by Michael Roegner (roegner [at] soltec [dot] net)

Here's a few pics of what's holding the bridge up. Notice the bracing on the crown of the piers. Also visible is one of several old abutments from an earlier bridge. I can't find any information about the previous bridge. The original bridge at this location was a Howe truss built in 1868 by the Indianapolis, Bloomington & Western Railroad. The bridge had timber approaches and cut stone abutments. No info though as to whether is was a deck or through truss, or if it was metal or wood construction.

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

Middle Fork River Trestle
Posted February 3, 2010, by MIchael Roegner (roegner [at] soltec [dot] net)

Here's a photo with a train @ 1970. The bridge was built in 1921 for the Peoria & Eastern Railroad. Last user was Conrail. Current plans are to include the bridge in the Urbana to Danville Kickapoo Bike trail.

Webmaster's note: The photo that was here has been incorporated into the main site.