Tod Ranch Bridge

Located north of Interstate 70 off Exit #343 in rural Wabaunsee County, this historic Pratt through truss bridge was saved from the scrappers torch and relocated to Kansas. The truss was originally built in 1887 at an unknown location in Oklahoma or southern Kansas. In 1949 or 1950, the rancher who owned this piece of property was reportedly driving through a rural area in Oklahoma or southern Kansas, and saw an unknown railroad replacing a truss bridge. Needing a bridge to cross Mill Creek on his ranch in rural Kansas, the rancher arranged with the railroad to have the span disassembled and shipped to Maple Hill, Kansas. The truss bridge would then be installed at the current location.

The bridge consists of a single track 170-foot, 8-panel, pin-connected Pratt through truss, set onto concrete substructures. A concrete deck was also added to the bridge at the time of installation. The truss was fabricated by Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Works, a smaller bridge builder from the 19th and early 20th Century. This company built a handful of bridges for a variety of railroads, particularly in the south central portion of the United States. The truss utilizes design features typical for bridges of this era, including light members, pinned connections and decorative portals. This particular span also uses a double-jointed lower connection the first lower connection from each end, a feature occasionally seen on 1880s truss spans.

While railroads often reused spans between locations, this bridge is a rare example of a private landowner acquiring a historic railroad bridge. It is believed the truss may have been constructed for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway or the Missouri Pacific Railroad. Research is ongoing, but without written records, it will be difficult to confirm the history of this bridge. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, and much of the bridge is still in excellent condition. The truss appears to have been fabricated from iron, as evidenced by the lack of section loss. The author has ranked this bridge as being highly significant, due to the historic age and unique example of reuse.

Authors Note: This bridge was accessed with permission. Please do not attempt to access this bridge without permission.