Historic Bridges
of the United States

Michigan Avenue Bridge

Cook County, Illinois

Overview
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Photos 

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Overview

The bridge acts as a memorial to Fort Dearborn.

Photo taken by James McCray in August 2007

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Drawbridge Gear Tower

The gear tower is a museum. The tower also is a memorial to Old Fort Dearborn, which was located at the south entrance to the bridge.

Photo taken by James McCray in February 2008

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General View Of Bridge From The Southeast Bank Of The Chicago River

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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View Of Bridge From Southwest Bank Of The Chicago River Looking North; Equitable Building (Center) And Tribune Tower (Left)

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Deck Truss, West Side

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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General View Of Portals Looking North

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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South Portal

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Interior Of Control Room

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Interior Of Control Room

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'The Discovers', Mural Commemorating Jolliet, Father Marquette, Lasalle And Tonty

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Defense', Mural Commemorating The Defense Of Fort Dearborn

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Pioneers'

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Regeneration,' Mural Commemorating The Rebuilding Of Chicago After The Great Fire

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Trunnion Girder (Left) And Counterweight (Right), North Span

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Gears With Trunnion Gear In Background, North Span

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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General View Of Electric Motors, North Span

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Electric Motor And Gear Set, North Span

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Detail Of Trunnion Girder And Hinges

Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record

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Map 

Vicinity Map

Vicinity map

Map links:

Facts 

Overview
Bascule bridge over Main Branch Chicago River on Michigan Avenue in Chicago
Location
Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1920
Design
Bascule Pratt deck truss
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 255.8 ft.
Total length: 398.8 ft.
Deck width: 64.0 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 13.5 ft.
Recognition
Posted to the National Register of Historic Places
Approximate latitude, longitude
+41.88861, -87.62417   (decimal degrees)
41°53'19" N, 87°37'27" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
16/448217/4637597 (zone/easting/northing)
USGS topographic map
Chicago Loop OE E
Inventory numbers
IL 016-6035 (Illinois bridge number)
BH 15152 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection (as of 10/2007)
Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Appraisal: Functionally obsolete
Sufficiency rating: 71.9 (out of 100)
Average daily traffic (as of 2006)
33,300

Categories 

Bascule (445)
Built 1920 (524)
Built during 1920s (4,731)
Chicago, Illinois (78)
Cook County, Illinois (82)
Deck truss (550)
Double decker (18)
Functionally obsolete (5,747)
HAER documented (350)
Illinois (937)
Movable (858)
NR-listed (1,538)
Navigable waterway (1,260)
Open (21,982)
Owned by city (1,996)
Pratt truss (1,595)
Span length 250-500 feet (592)
Total length 250-500 feet (2,170)
Truss (16,168)

Update Log 

Sources 

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Comments 

Michigan Avenue Bridge
Posted September 8, 2007, by Tom Staley (thomass [at] nc [dot] rr [dot] com)

Photo taken Sept. 7, 2007

Uploaded file: JPEG image data, EXIF standard 2.2, 2036302 bytes

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