Rating:
9 votes
Bloomington Southern - Wright's Branch Bridge
Photos
View looking East from adjacent South Victor Pike Road
by Eric T. Black via Google Earth
View this photo at mw2.google.com
BH Photo #170291
Facts
- Overview
- Abandoned Timber stringer bridge over Wright's Branch of Clear Creek and driveway on former Illinois Central Railroad
- Location
- Monroe County, Indiana
- Status
- Abandoned, but intact
- Future prospects
- Could connect with Bloomington Rail Trails that run over another portion of this former branch line further North to connect with Quarry site in the future.
- History
- Built 1913, rebuilt in 1942
- Railroads
- - Bloomington Southern Railroad
- Illinois Central Railroad (IC; ICG (1972-1988))
- Design
- Timber stringer
- Dimensions
-
Total length: 645.0 ft.
Deck width: 10.0 ft.
- Also called
- IC - Wright's Branch Bridge
Victor Oolitic Quarry bridge - Approximate latitude, longitude
- +39.06325, -86.57869 (decimal degrees)
39°03'48" N, 86°34'43" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 16/536449/4323880 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Clear Creek
- Elevation
- 578 ft. above sea level
- Inventory number
- BH 45702 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- March 31, 2021: New photo from Jim Berghoff
- March 22, 2020: New photo from Jim Berghoff
- May 7, 2018: New photo from Geoff McKim
- March 21, 2016: New photo from Geoff McKim
- August 5, 2014: Updated by James Norwood: Corrected name and added dates
- March 4, 2012: New photo from Jacob P. Bernard
- March 3, 2012: New photos from Jacob P. Bernard
- January 9, 2012: New photo from Nick
- July 25, 2010: Added by James Norwood
Sources
- James Norwood
- Nick
- Jacob P. Bernard
- Info about bridge construction - Interesting that railroad was incorporated in 1906, but this section built 1913-14. 45 carloads of lumber needed to build it.
- Geoff McKim
- Jim Berghoff
© Copyright 2021, Historic Bridge Foundation and contributors.
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/in/monroe/bh45702/
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/in/monroe/bh45702/
Finally went and found this gem. Unfortunately the trees and other vegetation blocked a lot of the view, but it was worth witnessing this great bridge. I have read where towards the end of it's railroad use, they wouldn't take the engine out onto the bridge because of weight restrictions but would push a length of cars out onto the bridge long enough to get to the other side where another engine would hook up and pull off this structure. I imagine many of the cars were unloaded and used as buffers only. The name used for this line was the Bloomington Southern, but was part of the Illinois Central. Victor Stone had a Plymouth switcher and one other "critter" for power for these trains. They still used them on their property for several years after tracks had been pulled from this bridge North to Bloomington before being sold off themselves.