CSX - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5.5
Photos
Looking Eastward (Western Face of Bridge) from KY 61
Picture taken by Taylor Marion on 9/16/2016 while driving along Preston Highway. This angle gives a good view of both parts of the bridge. One can see that the left half of the bridge is "naked." This is the part that was destroyed during the derailment episode in 1991.
Photo taken by Taylor Marion
BH Photo #364750
Description
With some humor this is Fort De Wolf Bridge v. 5.5. The first three were destroyed during the War of Northern Aggression. The fourth one was too wimpy so it was replaced by this one (v. 5.0). In 1991 the little engine that could really couldn't so it decided to check out and take half the bridge with it. The nearby villagers decided that they loved their bridge so much that they replaced the broken half, and so, we have F.D.W.B. v. 5.5Facts
- Overview
- Fifth incarnation (previous three destroyed by Civil War Battles) Pratt Through Truss railroad bridge over the Salt River on CSX Railroad
- Location
- Shepherdsville, Bullitt County, Kentucky
- Status
- Open to Traffic
- History
- Built ca. 1909 after four other bridges were built here. Three were destroyed and rebuilt during Civil War. The fourth one was replaced by this bridge around 1909. Two spans destroyed in a derailment on November 19th, 1991
- Railroads
- - CSX Railroad (CSX)
- Family Lines System (FL)
- Louisville & Nashville Railroad (L&N; LN)
- Seaboard System Railroad (SBD)
- Also called
- SBD - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5
L&N - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5.5
SBD - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5.5
FL - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5.5
CSX - Fort DeWolf Bridge #5
FL- Fort DeWolf Bridge #5
L&N- Fort DeWolf Bridge #5
CSX - Salt River Bridge
SBD - Salt River Bridge
FL - Salt River Bridge
L&N - Salt River Bridge - Approximate latitude, longitude
- +37.98448, -85.71573 (decimal degrees)
37°59'04" N, 85°42'57" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 16/612781/4204871 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Shepherdsville
- Inventory number
- BH 43594 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- January 31, 2019: New photos from Melissa Brand-Welch
- September 17, 2016: New photo from James McCray
- October 25, 2015: Updated by James McCray: recorrected myself and updated info to reflect that this is really bridge v. 5.5
- October 25, 2015: Updated by Luke: Clarified number of spans lost in the derailment
- October 23, 2015: Updated by Luke: Noted that at least one span was lost in a derailment on November 19th, 1991
- April 28, 2010: New Street View added by J.P.
- February 26, 2010: New photos from J.P.
- February 23, 2010: Updated by Bill Eichelberger: Added GPS coordinates.
- November 8, 2009: Added by James McCray
Related Bridges
- L&N - Fort DeWolf Bridge #4 (Predecessor)
Sources
- James McCray - jamesinslocomb [at] yahoo [dot] com
- Bill Eichelberger
- J.P. - wildcatjon2000 [at] gmail [dot] com
- Luke
- Exponent Engineering & Scientific Consulting - Image + Info
- 1909 Annual Report of the War Department - Book
- New York Times - Article
- The Free Library - December 6th, 1991 CSX Press Release
- Kentucky Train Derailment - description and pic of damaged bridge and train
- Melissa Brand-Welch - melissabrandwelch [at] msn [dot] com
Comments
hopefully with humor my corrections will accurately reflect the previous incarnation of this bridge!
I will correct myself...this must be F.D.W.B v. 5.5 because technically the 5th bridge was halfway destroyed by train wreck in 1991 and the new portion built afterwards.
The 5th or maybe the 6th
http://bullittcountyhistory.org/bullitthistory/memories/rrst... shows a previous bridge that's lightly constructed compared to the current bridge.
so then this would be the 5th bridge?....fourth one rebuilt sometime in 1862 after destruction of third one....then this one built sometime around 1909.
I'm sorry but this bridge is far too heavily built to have been "built in 1862"
The "Annual Reports of the War Department" from 1909 mentions the approval of the reconstruction of an existing railroad bridge.
https://books.google.com/books?id=lwhGAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA919&dq=S...
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/ky/bullitt/salt-river/
Looks good to me :')
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/CSX+TRANSPORTATION+ANNOUNCES+R... confirms the 1909 date of construction, as well as provides information that it was reconstructed and reopened within 17 days.