Mill Creek Arch Bridge

7-17-20

7-17-20

The KSHS Surveyed this bridge in July of this year. It has been listed as NRHP Eligible.

Mr. Powers:

Thank you for sharing your photos with us. I'm glad to see that this bridge is still in place. I can remember when it was still open to traffic and I have driven over it several times. I really hope it can be preserved along with all the other great bridges in Fort Scott.

Yet another cool find in ft scott.

Another town that is full of bridges. Hopefully more will come on line in the next few years. I have put an arrow to the three on this map, two Marsh Arches and the other an abandoned truss with a sidewalk. There is another King Iron Bridge over Marmaton in the lower left quadrant. You can find them all in this county. Hopefully Long Shoals will be moved here in the foreseeable future.

Yep, there are two Marsh Arch bridges within a couple blocks of each other there. One over Mill Creek and one over the Marmaton River. The first time I drove through there, I thought I was seeing double.

Sorry that is the bridge back behind Max's, use to take you to Humboldt St., turn left you would go to Riverside Cafe, right to the Button's Salvage and the Sale barn. Keep going west, Pavey's Ford and three mile corner.

Through arch bridge over Mill Creek on N Crawford St in Fort Scott? there is no bridge on north crawford street in Fort Scott, that is the bridge on north National Street. I use to cross it every morning on my mail route. born and raised in Fort Scott.

"The commission approved Bailey's recommendation to keep the bridge closed to vehicle traffic, however, it will be open to foot traffic (pedestrians and bicycles). Existing utilities on the bridge will also continue to be used."

http://www.fstribune.com/story/1823122.html

Glad to hear that the bridge will remain open to non-vehicular traffic. It'd be great if it were part of a city-wide trail network so that more people could appreciate it.

Here is the latest news on this bridge. The future is still uncertain and the bridge remains closed. The good news, is the nearby National Avenue Bridge will have some re-hab work done.

http://www.fstribune.com/story/1820639.html

h/t David Backlin

Hi Sheldon:

The bridge is still in place, but it is closed to traffic. Apparently the city has not decided what to do with the bridge, so it will probably remain closed for a while.

I wonder what happened to this bridge. Is it open to pedestrians now or did it get replaced?

Sounds like people are indeed using it. Based on Mr. Nuzum's photographs, it looks like most of the damage to the bridge is contained to the railings, and not the verticals. Water tends to collect on the deck of the bridge and appears to be seeping through the concrete as per his photographs.

Yes, these bridges are becoming rare, and to have two of them almost within sight of each other is quite surprising. At this time Bourbon Co. leads Kansas with 5 extant Marsh arches bridges. All of them are single through spans, but of various lenghts.

I visited the bridge New Year's Day. The road was blocked but the barriers had been pushed aside enough that a car could cross--so I did. I suspect the locals find it inconvenient to detour.

There is a lot of truck traffic in this light industrial part of town and the concrete on the bridge is deteriorated. I can't think of any place where there are two marsh arches just a few blocks apart. The town might be wise to limit loads and do a rehab sufficient to carry light vehicles.

By the way: if you are on Facebook and subscribed to the The Bridgehunter's Chronicles group, I posted an album of photos taken by Scott Nuzum.

The bridge is indeed "closed until further notice", but the city has not decided what their future plans are, as there is no money to repair or replace it.

Maybe if someone lives in the area, they could start a campaign to save the bridge?

Thanks David. Glad you can consult with locals.

I know someone who lives in the area. I'll see if he knows anything.

Hi Ruth:

I have been trying to find out what the future holds for this bridge, but I have not had any luck. I visited the bridge last November during a torrential downpour and found it to be closed. Given the foul weather, I did not spend much time investigating.

I am hoping that we just have a repair job, or that the bridge is just closed but not doomed. I have been scouring the newspaper, but have not found any news items about it.

Robert: Is this one of the doomed arch bridges? I was surprised when I saw it was closed since it wasn't that long ago I was in Fort Scott and drove across it. Do you know when they closed it?