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SOO - Fox River Swing Bridge

Winnebago County, Wisconsin

Photos 

ex-Soo Line Trestle

The swing span is now removed, but a short section of the south approach remains as a finger pier. The Jackson Street bridge is in the background.

Photo taken by Robert Thompson in December 2009

Enlarge

BH Photo #150336

Map 

Facts 

Overview
Lost through truss swing bridge over the Fox River on Soo Line Railroad
Location
Oshkosh, Winnebago County, Wisconsin
Status
Removed
Future prospects
Approach plate girder spans have been preserved as a fishing pier.
History
Built 1903, approaches built 1946
Builder
- Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Co. of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Railroads
- Minneapolis, St. Paul, & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad (SOO)
- Soo Line Railroad (SOO)
Design
This was a swing bridge crossing the navigable Fox River in Oshkosh WI. The swing span was a symmetrical through truss on a center pier. After the rail route was abandoned and removed, the bridge sat idle for years. The swing span was removed a few years ago; the approach spans on the south have been retained as a fishing pier.
Approximate latitude, longitude
+44.01680, -88.54943   (decimal degrees)
44°01'00" N, 88°32'58" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/375810/4874905 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Oshkosh
Elevation
747 ft. above sea level
Inventory number
BH 43695 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Built 1903 (626)
Built during 1900s (7,681)
Fox River (to Green Bay, WI) (53)
Lost (29,047)
Minneapolis, St. Paul, & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad (28)
Movable (3,136)
Oshkosh, Wisconsin (14)
Preserved (1,229)
 Railroad (16,518)
Soo Line Railroad (322)
Swing (1,576)
Through truss (17,180)
Truss (35,925)
Winnebago County, Wisconsin (41)
Wisconsin (1,712)
Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Co. (177)

Update Log 

  • October 3, 2019: New photo from Melissa Brand-Welch
  • August 24, 2013: New photo from Douglas Butler
  • December 16, 2009: Updated by Robert Thompson: Corrected rail line (Soo Line vs. Milwaukee Road). Thanks to Randall Vos for the information.
  • December 2, 2009: Updated by Robert Thompson: minor edits

Sources 

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Comments 

CMSP&P Railroad Swing Bridge (Milwaukee Road)
Posted December 15, 2009, by Randall Vos (r_vos1979 [at] yahoo [dot] com)

That bridge is actually ex-Soo Line, nee Wisconsin Central, it was abandoned in 1993 after the new Wisconsin Central re-routed all the traffic to the ex-CNW bridge. Milwaukee Road never crossed the Fox River with a bridge of their own.