Callaway Fork Bridge
Facts
- Overview
- Closed through truss bridge over Callaway Fork on Old Route D west of New Melle
- Location
- St. Charles County, Missouri
- Status
- Closed to all traffic in 1996 NBI
- History
- Built 1909 by the Decatur Bridge Co.; made obsolete by new bridge in 1968
- Builder
- - Decatur Bridge Co. of Decatur, Illinois
- Design
- Pin-connected, 8-panel Pratt through truss. Timber deck of 2x4 planks on edge, asphalt laid on top.
- Dimensions
-
Length of largest span: 116.1 ft.
Total length: 117.1 ft.
Deck width: 12.8 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 14.4 ft.
- Also called
- Karrenbrock Mill Bridge
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +38.69377, -90.92052 (decimal degrees)
38°41'38" N, 90°55'14" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 15/680847/4284846 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- New Melle
- Land survey
- T. 46 N., R. 1 E., Sec. 33
- Inventory number
- BH 22569 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- December 2, 2016: Updated by Fmiser: Added category "Wooden deck"
- July 20, 2013: New photos from Diane Martin
- March 16, 2005: Posted photos by Michael Gulledge
Sources
- Missouri Historic Bridge Inventory
- Fmiser - fmiser [at] gmail [dot] com
Comments
Traffic was heavy so I didn't get to the bridge until it was too dark for photos. Bother! But it is still there, with a timber deck overlayed with asphalt, and small trees growing _on_ the deck.
It was dark enough I didn't examine the bridge closely, but it looked complete and intact - ready to be moved to a new home where it could be appreciated and loved. At least it wasn't demolished. Yet.
If you visit, approach from the north. The road on the south has a gate and an extensive collection of No Trespassing signs. From the north, I could have driven onto the bridge except for the guardrail welded across the portal.
Still shows in the most current satellite view......which I know isn't 20 years old.
Looks like this is an old alignment of the highway that now runs to the West.
I went to find this bridge today for a photography assignment i had and could not find it, i asked a local and they said it has been gone for over 20 years!
This page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/mo/st-charles/callaway-fork/
I grew up playing on, under, and around this old bridge. The creek beneath it was a favorite hang out for my brothers and I. It's still standing, but I wouldn't trust it to anything besides foot traffic.