Wynkoop Street RR Bridge/Manny's Bridge - Denver, CO - Colorado Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

The plaque reads:

Wynkoop street RR Bridge
1908

Denver's first settlement was along the confluence of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek. Arapahoe Indians named Cherry Creek for the wild chokecherries they harvested here in the Fall. They respected the stream's power and warned the first town builder's against building on its banks. Disregarding Native American wisdom, gold-seekers and pioneers poured into the area, quickly followed by railroads to supply the burgeoning community. The first railroad was the Denver Pacific, later part of the Union Pacific Railroad system. The Union Depot was completed in 1881, and by the mid-1880's, a veritable smorgasbord of railroad acronyms had come into being: the Denver & Rio Grande (D&RG), the Denver, South Park, Pacific and the Denver & New Orleans (DSP&P and D&NO) - later called the Colorado and Southern (C&S) - the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe (AT&SF) and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy (CB&Q), which today is the Burlington Northern (BN). Cherry Creek has been traversed by seven railroad bridges since 1887. Five of the seven still stand. Bridges built before the flood of 1878 were simple wood pile trestles, but after the 1885 flood, these were gradually replaced with iron and steel truss construction. Four of the bridges were single track, two double-track and one four-track. The Wynkoop Street Bridge was used by the Denver and Rio Grande as a mainline track to supply the industries and warehouses along Wynkoop Street. This steel version was constructed in 1908 and remains a lonely reminder of a once frenetic past, which has seen neither traffic or trains for many years.

The website reads:
Cherry Creek, named for the chokecherries that grew wild along its banks, was usually a small, shallow trickle of water, which led the area's settlers to believe it would be safe to build in its creek bed. But weather showed the error in this thinking by letting loose six major floods between 1864 and 1965, which often destroyed the railroad bridges. Especially devastating was the flood of 1878, which whipped all the bridges along Cherry Creek. After the 1885 flood, the city, the railroads, and area businesses channeled, walled, and bricked the creek. By 1907-08 the lower downtown area was completed. The hope was that this would prevent any further destruction.

Cherry Creek has had only seven bridges built by the railroads since 1887, five are still standing, although only two are in use by the railroads. Bridges before the flood of 1878 were pile trestles. After the 1885 flood, iron and steel replaced the pile construction.

The Wynkoop Street Bridge was originally a pile trestle with a length of 352 feet. After being destroyed in the 1878 flood, a new small truss bridge was built before this 1908 version was constructed. Fitted for single track by the Penn Street Company for use by the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, the bridge is 109 feet long. Very little has changed since its original construction, except that the bridge was shifted on its foundation in 1914 and new stringers were added in 1954.

Dr. Emanual Salzman, one of the original pioneers of urban loft living in Lower Downtown, as president of the St. Charles Neighborhood Group spearheaded an effort to rehabilitate the Wynkoop Railroad Bridge. The bridge now provides easy access for cyclists and pedestrians from the Cherry Creek and Platte River Greenway to the main pedestrian entrance to Coors Field on Wynkoop Street, and access from Lower Downtown to Elitch Gardens.

There is a second plaque that reads:

Manny's Bridge

This bridge symbolizes the revitalization of lower downtown Denver in the late twentieth century and represents one of the many contributions made to our community by Emmanuel 'Manny' Salzman. After moving to LoDo in 1980, Manny and his wife, Joanne, dedicated themselves to preserving the historic integrity of the area and to creating a neighborhood spirit. Their accomplishments include successfully advocating that LoDo become a historic district, championing the establishment of an architectural design review committee, and founding the St. Charles Neighborhood Group. In the mid-1990's, Manny lobbied the City of Denver for a streetscape grant to convert this abandoned railroad bridge into an amenity for pedestrians and bicyclists. Therefore, in this month of May 2006, this bridge is officially designated MANNY'S BRIDGE.

A third plaque reads:

Built By
THE PENNSYLVANIA
STEEL CO
STEELTON, PA
1907

Group or Groups Responsible for Placement: Lower Downtown [Denver] District County or City: Denver Date Dedicated: Unknown Check here for Web link(s) for additional information: [Web Link]

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