Rating:
9 votes

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge

Miami County, Kansas

Photos 

Overview

Photo taken by Ruth Reynolds

BH Photo #103142

Map 

Street Views 

Facts 

Overview
Three span through arch bridge over Pottawatomie Creek on Old KS 7 in Osawatomie
Location
Osawatomie, Miami County, Kansas
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1932; rehabilitated 1995
Builder
- J.S. Vance & Son of Parsons, Kansas
Design
Marsh arch
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 120.0 ft.
Total length: 372.9 ft.
Deck width: 23.9 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 30.0 ft.
Recognition
Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on March 10, 1983
Approximate latitude, longitude
+38.48531, -94.95084   (decimal degrees)
38°29'07" N, 94°57'03" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
15/329848/4261466 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Osawatomie
Average daily traffic (as of 2011)
2,715
Inventory numbers
NRHP 83000433 (National Register of Historic Places reference number)
KS 000000000610581 (Kansas local bridge number on the National Bridge Inventory)
BH 18134 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of June 2017)
Overall condition: Good
Superstructure condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Good (7 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 74.4 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com

Categories 

Arch (12,407)
Built 1932 (973)
Built during 1930s (11,930)
Have street view (27,728)
J.S. Vance & Son (7)
Kansas (3,240)
Marsh arch (69)
Marsh arch (tied) (17)
Miami County, Kansas (79)
 NR-listed (2,997)
Open (40,256)
Osawatomie, Kansas (6)
Owned by county (21,238)
Rainbow arch (251)
Span length 100-125 feet (4,464)
Structurally deficient (13,463)
Total length 250-500 feet (5,354)

Update Log 

  • December 3, 2016: New photos from Neil Krout
  • October 19, 2016: Updated by Robert Elder: Added category "Marsh arch (tied)"
  • December 7, 2012: Updated by Clark Vance: Added category "J.S. Vance & Son"
  • May 20, 2010: New Street View added by Robert Elder
  • March 8, 2010: Updated by Robert Elder: Added Street View link
  • March 2, 2010: Updated by Robert Elder: Made slight adjustment to GPS Coordinates.
  • October 18, 2009: Updated by Robert Elder: Added Marsh Arch to Categories.
  • July 8, 2008: Updated by Robert Elder: Updated categories
  • November 13, 2006: Posted photo from Ruth Reynolds

Sources 

  • Ruth Reynolds - ruthmusic [at] yahoo [dot] com
  • Robert Elder - robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com
  • KSHS Marsh page - Description of construction history
  • Neil Krout - kickinpony [dot] 66 [at] gmail [dot] com
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Comments 

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted December 3, 2016, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

Thanks for the new photos. It is good to have pictures of the underside and substructure on here.

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted June 15, 2011, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

Article concerning the contstruction of this bridge as well as the nearby Creamery Bridge:

http://osawatominews.com/?p=884

The article discusses an older bridge that pre-dated the Marsh Arch over Pottawatomie Creek. It is my understanding that this bridge was never demolished. There is a Parker truss on that old alignment:

http://bridgehunter.com/ks/miami/bh37983/

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted June 10, 2011, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

Osawatomie Graphic Article concerning the future of this bridge: http://www.kccommunitynews.com/osawatomie-graphic-news/28158...

H/T Nathan Holth www.historicbridges.org

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted January 19, 2011, by Nathan Holth (form3 [at] historicbridges [dot] org)

It is sad all the confusion and misunderstanding that goes on with historic bridges. Historic preservation laws will allow for extensive repairs, even in-kind replacement of significant portions of original material if needed. The only restriction is probably deck width, and as Robert says, this should not be an issue. Here is a newer non-editorial article http://www.herald-online.com/2011011913246/news/miami-county... and here is the RFP for design services: http://www.miamicountyks.org/bids/FAS_581.pdf

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted January 16, 2011, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

Thanks for the link. One of the reasons that so many Marsh Arch bridges have been demolished is their width. The editorial seems to be arguing that because of restrictions, a bridge should not be listed on the NRHP while it still carries traffic.

I am certainly not against making necesary repairs to strengthen the bridge, nor would I oppose bypassing the bridge. As far as big vehicles are concerned, there is a four-lane modern bridge over Pottawatomie Creek about a 1/2 mile to the east.

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted January 15, 2011, by Randy Rasa (randy [at] cleversoul [dot] com)

Sounds like Osawatomie wants to "improve" this bridge, but cannot because it's on the National Register of Historic Places: http://micofriday.com/2011011413232/opinion/editorials/histo...

Seems like they're missing the point of the purpose of the historic designation. Is there any way to widen this bridge without substantially changing it's character and historic significance? That's what the registry is designed to protect.

Pottawatomie Creek Bridge
Posted March 8, 2010, by Robert Elder (robertelder1 [at] gmail [dot] com)

A close look at the street view reveals that butresses may have been removed from the approach spans. This has been noted by KSHS: http://www.kshs.org/resource/national_register/nominationsNR...