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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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Kate Shelly Bridge Photo taken by J.R. Manning |
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3/4 View Of West Truss, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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3/4 View Of Second Truss From West, From Southwest Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Piers Beneath West Truss, From East Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of Connections, West Truss, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of Upper Chord Connections, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Elevation, From North Note the Kate Shelly Bridge in the background. Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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3/4 View, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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3/4 View Of East Truss, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of East Pier, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
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Detail Of Connections At East Truss, From Southeast Photo by Joe Elliott, Summer 1995, for HAER |
"This bridge is one of the few remaining large-scale wagon trusses in Iowa. A locally important crossing of a major river, it is one of the few multiple span pin-connected Pratt trusses remaining in the state. One of its four spans is a long-span Pennsylvania through truss, an important sub-type of the Pratt truss.
"The Wagon Bridge is an approximately 703' four-span steel bridge composed, begining at the east end, of a timber stringer approach span of about 160', one approximately 124' pin-connected Pennsylvania through truss, one approximately 200' pin-connected Pratt through truss, and one approximately 96' pin-connected Pratt through truss. The roadway width is 16'-0" and has a timber deck. The substructure consists of concrete-filled steel cylindrical piers with plate or bar diaphragms, and a concrete abutment at the west end. This abutment was originally constructed of stone, and may have been originally covered with concrete.
"The main span of this bridge is one of the oldest and best preserved large wagon trusses in Iowa. The bridge continues to serve as a locally important stream crossing, and also serves as an excellent example of the work of a very prolific and important Iowa bridge company, about which relatively little is known."
This document was prepared as part of the Iowa Historic Bridges Recording Project performed durng the Summer of 1995 by the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). The project was sponsored by the Iowa Department of Transportation (IDOT). Preliminary research on this bridge was performed by Clayton B. Fraser of Fraserdesign, Loveland, CO. --Robert W. Jackson, August 1995
Does anyone know how the property owners on the west side of the river get to their homes? The last time I was there, Juneberry Road was closed beneath the Kate Shelly Bridge. Without this bridge and without Juneberry Road access, those properties are inaccessible.
That's amazing. That bridge probably stood for a hundred years and only just now was damaged by this "hundred year flood". Pretty amazing, the power of nature.
Currently, this bridge is closed due to flood damage. It can be walked across, but isn't suitable for vehicle travel. The flood waters went over the east approach, buckling the decking, eroding the approach, possibly moving the first approach span, and damaging the railing. Hopefully this will be repaired, but I suspect that it will never be open for vehicle traffic again since it's my understanding that the current Kate Shelley High Bridge will be converted to auto traffic once the new rail bridge is constructed.
The east end of the bridge (5th photo in the sequence) makes a lot of noise. The road is closed, due to construction traffic where work is being done on the Kate Shelly bridge. For a Sunday afternoon, on a closed road, there was an awful lot of traffic on this bridge!
The last photo in this sequence is of the High Level Kate Shelly Bridge. That bridge carries the double mainline of the Union Pacific across the Des Moines River and is named for a young woman who, in 1881, risked her life to save a Chicago & North Western Railway passenger express train. The perspective of the photo belies the 184' height of the Kate Shelly Bridge, which was built in 1901 and was the first bridge named for a woman. http://www.americanfolklore.net/folktales/ia.html
The bridge in front of the Kate Shelly bridge is a temporary bridge to allow construction equipment to cross the river.
Webmaster's note: The photos that were here have been incorporated into the main site.
This bridge, on 200th Avenue, is just upriver from the Kate Shelly High Level Bridge. It is a wood decked truss and a cheap thrill to drive across. You can hear the bridge creak when you walk on it, let alone drive on it.
Webmaster's note: The photos that were here have been incorporated into the main site.
