This deck girder bridge crosses a tributary of Camp Creek near Mitchellville.
While a date stamp on the concrete abutment gives a date of 1907, one span of the bridge has a plaque giving a date of 1903.
This four year difference may indicate that the spans were stored until construction. However, most likely the previous bridge was built in 1907 and consisted of a steel trestle, which was ultimately replaced.
Rock Island liked using secondhand spans, which were usually from former main lines and sent to be emergency replacements for other bridges. It is also possible that these spans were originally constructed here, but the substructures were replaced.
Currently, the bridge consists of three deck girder spans, set onto timber piers. The bridge is approached by a trestle span on either side. Footings from a previous bridge exist below. A 1972 track chart lists this bridge as having three 44 foot deck girder spans. However, the current bridge has an 70 foot span, as well as a 44 foot span on either side.
The author believes the most likely situation is that two 44-foot spans were reused when the bridge was rebuilt with a 70-foot span from an unknown location.
Unfortunately, Rock Island bridge information has been incredibly difficult to find, so a confirmed build date may never be known.
Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair condition. Iowa Interstate uses this bridge exclusively for car storage, so it is likely that it will see trail development in the coming years.
The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.
The photo above is an overview.