Back before Interstate highways were a thing, this elegant cantilevered Warren truss bridge was built to carry automobile traffic between Louisville KY and Clarksville IN.
Although William Clark met his exploration partner Meriwether Lewis for the first time at his brother's nearby home, this bridge is not named for William Clark, but for his big brother George Rogers Clark, a key player in the American Revolutionary War.
Waymark coordinates are taken in the middle of the bridge. View coordinates are from the Falls of the Ohio State park in Clarksville IN.
When Blasterz visited, the bridge was half yellow and half grey - in 2020 the paint job was completed.
From the Bridgehunter website: (
visit link)
"Facts
Overview
Polygonal Warren cantilevered through truss bridge over Ohio River on US 31 between Louisville and Jeffersonville
Location
Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky, and Clark County, Indiana
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1929 by the American Bridge Co.; tolls removed 1946; rehabilitated 1958
Builders
- American Bridge Co. of New York
- Modjeski & Masters of Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania (Design)
- Paul Philippe Cret (Architect For Pylons)
- Ralph Modjeski of Bochnia, Poland (Design)
Design
Polygonal Warren cantilevered riveted through truss
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 819.6 ft.
Total length: 5,746.5 ft. (1.1 mi.)
Deck width: 38.0 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 13.5 ft.
Recognition
Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on March 8, 1984
Also called
Louisville Municipal Bridge (official name until 1949)
Second Street Bridge
Average daily traffic (as of 2009)
14,800
Inventory numbers
KY 056-B00136N (Kentucky bridge number)
NRHP 84001578 (National Register of Historic Places reference number)
BH 18825 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Inspection report (as of June 2018)
Overall condition: Fair
Superstructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 49.4 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com"