Topeka Railroad Bridge (West)

Located alongside Topeka Boulevard in Topeka, this large through truss bridge is the western railroad bridge across the Kansas River in the city. The first bridge at this location was an iron truss constructed by the Chicago, Kansas & Nebraska Railway in 1887. It is likely that this truss was a quadrangular lattice through truss, which was the standard design for the Rock Island and affiliated railroads between the mid-1880s and the turn of the 20th Century. It is believed that the first bridge was destroyed by flooding in 1903, which also destroyed numerous other bridges along the Kansas River. The bridge would be replaced by six 153-foot, 6-panel pin-connected Warren through truss spans, set onto stone and concrete substructures. The Warren through truss design was becoming popular during the first years of the 20th Century. These particular trusses utilized a lattice portal, deep solid heel bracings and lightweight members. Pin connected Warren trusses are extremely unusual, and are typically representative of some of the earliest examples of the design.

The bridge was largely unchanged, until flooding in 1951 destroyed the northern three spans of the bridge. These spans would be replaced with three 153-foot, 6-panel riveted Warren through truss spans the following year. These trusses appear to have originally been constructed in approximately 1905, and were originally used at another unknown location. The trusses are very similar to the southern spans, with a lattice portal bracing, solid heel bracing and lightweight members. However, the northern spans utilized exclusively One possibility is that the trusses were originally located at Brighton, Iowa; a three span bridge that was removed in the late 1940s. Research into the history of the trusses is ongoing. Not long after the bridge was repaired, the substructures of the bridge would be reconstructed, and screw jack style lift mechanisms would be installed to protect the bridge from future flooding.

Railroads often reused spans to save money on bridge needs. Often, when a span became inadequate or unnecessary at one location, it could feasibly be reused at another location, with or without repairs. The Rock Island utilized standard sized spans, which allowed spans to easily be reused between locations. The Warren through truss became the standard design for the Rock Island during the first decade of the 20th Century. The design offered a durable, easy to construct and strong option for medium length spans. This particular bridge is an excellent opportunity to see different variations of the standard design on one bridge. As of 2024, the remains of old span #3 can still be seen in the river bed. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being regionally significant, due to the truss design and unique history.