Historic Central Texas bridge gets a reprieve - Gatesville, TX
Posted by: 
WalksfarTX
N 31° 25.970 W 097° 45.695
14R E 617693 N 3478235
The future of the 1904 Leon River bridge, in Gatesville, was somewhat secured last week when the span was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Waymark Code: WMV8G5
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 03/14/2017
Views: 0
Channel 10 News
Gatesville City Manager Bill Parry said Monday he was notified that the bridge was designated a national historic place, which means the bridge must be maintained and must not be destroyed.
"That old bridge is where that old bridge is going to be for the foreseeable future," Parry said.
Parry said the Texas Department of Transportation in recent weeks has completed an inspection of the structure and "the bridge is safe," Parry said.
It is a 137-foot-long Pratt through-truss span with a 5-foot timber approach and is one of just a few such bridges that remain standing in Texas.
The bridge is of steel construction with a wooden deck and lattice-work railing, sitting atop members connected by steel pins and graced by stone structured abutments at either end.
A state historical marker at the bridge says the structure was built by the George E. King Bridge Company, of Des Moines, Iowa, and that it opened to traffic in 1904.