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UP Water Street Bridge (Wimlington)

Lost Deck Plate Girder Bridge over Water Street
Wilmington, Will County, Illinois

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Name UP Water Street Bridge (Wimlington)
Built By Alton Railroad
Contractor American Bridge Company of New York
Currently Owned By Union Pacific Railroad
Length 30 Feet Total
Width 3 Tracks, 1 In Use
Height Above Ground 10 Feet 1 Inch
Superstructure Type Deck Plate Girder
Substructure Type Concrete
Date Built 1916
Traffic Count 0 Trains/Day (Bridge has been Replaced)
Current Status Replaced by a New Bridge
UP Bridge Number 52.66
Significance Minimal Significance
Documentation Date June 2015


Located in the town of Wilmington, this small deck girder bridge once crossed Water Street.
Built in 1930, the bridge likely replaced a wooden trestle. The bridge featured a single deck plate girder span, set onto concrete substructures.
While that bridge was built for three tracks, only one was in use at the time of replacement.
Unfortunately, the spans were replaced in 2017 as part of a mass upgrade project between Chicago and Saint Louis for high speed passenger rail. Unfortunately, this upgrade destroyed dozens of historic bridges.
At the time of replacement, the bridge was in fair to poor condition.

The author has ranked this bridge as being minimally significant, due to the common designs.

Citations

Source Type

Source

Build Date Illinois Central Gulf 1979 track profile
Contractor Missing American Bridge Company plaque
Railroad Line History Source ICC Valuation Information, Compiled by Richard S. Steele