County of bridge: Madison County
Location of bridge: Old Rock Rd, (Old US 66), Granite City
Bridge built: 1929
"The Chain of Rocks Bridge spans the Mississippi River on the north edge of St. Louis, Missouri. The eastern end of the bridge is on Chouteau Island, (part of Madison, Illinois), while the western end is on the Missouri shoreline.
"The bridge was for a time the route used by U.S. Route 66 (US 66) to cross over the Mississippi. Its most notable feature is a 22-degree bend occurring at the middle of the crossing. Originally a motor route, the bridge now carries walking and biking trails over the river. A new Chain of Rocks Bridge carries vehicular traffic to the north. The old route to the bridge is now called Chain of Rocks Road and ends near Roman Road. Parking is available at the start of the now pedestrian route. The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.
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The bridge's name comes from a large shoal, or rocky rapids, called the Chain of Rocks, which made that stretch of the Mississippi extremely dangerous to navigate. Because of a low-water dam built by the Corps of Engineers in the 1960s, little of the Chain of Rocks is visible today except during extreme low water conditions. After 1940, only a single impediment prevented the maintenance of a safe and reliable 9-foot (2.7 m) navigation channel on the Mississippi River from St. Paul, Minnesota, to New Orleans. This impediment, known as the Chain of Rocks Reach, was a 17-mile (27 km) series of rock ledges that began just north of St. Louis and was extremely difficult and dangerous to navigate. In the late 1940s and early 1950s the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a 8.4-mile-long (13.5 km) canal to bypass this treacherous reach. To ensure adequate depths in the pool below the old Lock and Dam 26, a non-movable, low water dam was constructed just downstream of the old bridge and a lock was installed at the south end of the canal. Known respectively as Dam No. 27, also called Chain of Rocks Dam, and Locks No. 27, or Chain of Rocks Lock" ~ Wikipedia
Mark your calenders for Eagle Days early next year on the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge in north St. Louis County. Watch the big birds pluck fish from the river, ride ice floes and soar.
Where • Riverview Drive just south of Interstate 270; or west on Chain of Rocks Road off Illinois Route 3.
When • 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 15-16.
How long • The bridge is one mile; the walk to the viewing areas is about a half mile steadily uphill.
Surface • It's a paved pedestrian bridge.
User notes • Be courteous to folks with the big camera lenses and spy telescopes perched on tripods. Lewis and Clark re-enactors will be at both ends of the bridge. The Audubon Society will present demonstrations and exhibits. The World Bird Sanctuary will bring an eagle for closer looks. Illinois and Missouri conservationists say there's no way to tell how good the viewing will be, but the Mississippi River Valley has the second highest concentration of eagles in the United States.
Facilities • Trailnet and the Missouri Department of Conservation will have warming tents, hot refreshments and restrooms.
Wheelchair accessible • Yes. But it's winter and uphill. Advise anyone pushing your chair to wear golf shoes with metal cleats; they'll appreciate the spikes especially when heading downhill.
Parking • Parking at the Missouri entrance is $5. Free parking will be at the St. Louis Welcome Center at Riverview Drive and I-270 and at North Riverfront Park south of the waterworks. A free shuttle will serve both Missouri locations. Parking is free on the Illinois side of the bridge. If you're unwilling to scale the bridge, go to the Illinois side, take a turn south near the parking lot, follow the road west to an enormous parking lot south of the bridge overlooking the Chain of Rocks rapids. You can see the bridge and the rapids and a ground view of swooping eagles and nervous seagulls.
Pets • No. Officials will use de-icer, which could be harmful to dogs walking on the bridge. ~ St. Louis Post-Dispatch