Located in the town of Cherry Valley, this bridge was constructed out of recycled deck girders to replace an older truss.
The previous bridge here was a unique skewed three span Quadrangular Through Truss, constructed 1886 by Lassig Bridge & Iron Works. Unfortunately, this bridge grew to be too light for modern rail traffic, and was replaced around 1987.
A new bridge would be constructed at this location of deck girders built at another location. All spans had 1900-1910 era American Bridge Company plaques, although these were all pulled off for souvenirs. Upon further research, it was given to the author that these spans were pulled up and moved here from a bridge in Wisconsin.
Only one location in Wisconsin had five or more 70-foot deck girders and was removed in the 1980s. This location; Winona, Minnesota; was built in 1928 to replace an older truss bridge. The bridge consisted of numerous deck girder spans. While some spans still exist, all of the twelve 70-foot spans were removed from this bridge.
When these twelve spans were removed in the mid-1980s, they were not scrapped. Seven are confirmed to have found their way to a location near Rollingstone, where they still sit, although they were for sale on Craigslist several years ago. With five spans at Cherry Valley, this would account for all twelve removed spans.
The only concern with this theory the author has is the plaques. The missing plaques on the bridge indicate a pre-1910 structure, while the Winona Bridge was not constructed until 1928. One possible theory is that older spans were used on the 1928 Winona Bridge, at least for this section, which was built exclusively over an island.
Regardless of the origin of the bridge, this is a great example of modern railroads reusing viable structures to replace older bridges. As stated to the author, the spans from an unconfirmed location were shipped to the Sterling, IL yard. As part of a rebuilding, much of the interior bracing was replaced. They were then placed on new piers and abutments, one at a time, to replace the trusses.
Currently, this bridge consists of five deck girder spans and a single I-Beam span, set onto steel pile substructures.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in good condition, with no noted deterioration.
The author has ranked this bridge as moderately significant, due to the example of modern reuse of a bridge.
The photo above is an overview of center spans.
| Upstream | Belvidere Rail Bridge |
| Downstream | CN Kishwaukee River Bridge |