St. Charles Air Line Bridge
| St. Charles Air Line Bridge | |
|---|---|
 St. Charles Air Line Bridge with an upright B&OCT Bascule Bridge just behind | |
| Coordinates | 41°51′39″N 87°38′04″W / 41.86083°N 87.63444°WCoordinates: 41°51′39″N 87°38′04″W / 41.86083°N 87.63444°W |
| Carries | 2 tracks of the Canadian National Railway |
| Crosses | Chicago River (south branch) |
| Locale | Chicago, Illinois |
| Official name | St. Charles Air Line Bridge |
| Maintained by | Canadian National Railway |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Strauss Trunnion bascule lift span |
| Longest span | Originally 260 feet (79 m), later shortened to 220 feet (67 m) in 1930 |
| History | |
| Designer | Joseph Strauss |
| Opened | 1919 |
The St. Charles Air Line Bridge is a Strauss Trunnion bascule bridge which spans the Chicago River in Chicago, Illinois.
Built as part of the St. Charles Air Line Railroad by the American Bridge Company in 1919, the bridge originally had a span of 260 feet (79 m). This bridge held the world record for longest bascule-type span until 1930, when it was shortened to 220 feet (67 m) during a relocation as a result of straightening the river channel. The chief design engineer of the original bridge was Leonard O. Hopkins.
Photo Gallery
See also
- The adjacent B&OCT Bascule Bridge, with more information about the history of both bridges
- List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Illinois
Further reading
- "Counterweight Repair of Historic St. Charles Air Line Bridge" (PDF). Concrete Repair Bulletin. 28 (6): 9–13. November 2015.
External links
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. IL-157, "St. Charles Air Line Bridge"
- Historic Bridges of Michigan and Elsewhere
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