UP Sugar Creek Bridge (Bloomington)

Located on the south side of Normal, this deck plate girder bridge carries the former Chicago & Alton Railroad over Sugar Creek immediately west of Center Street. Little is known about the history of this bridge. The first bridge at this location was likely a timber pile trestle. In the 1880s, the bridge may have been replaced by an iron girder. In 1924, the C&A significantly enlarged the yard and shops, which were located immediately southwest of this bridge. As part of the expansion, it is believed this bridge was reconstructed into the current configuration. Railroad records indicate that the bridge was constructed in 1884, 1890, 1920 and 1924. This may indicate that the original girder here was constructed in 1884, and was widened for additional track(s) in 1890. These dates are consistent with a significant upgrade of bridges along this route (1884) and the construction of additional tracks (1890). It is believed that the 1920 and 1924 components were added during the expansion of the yard above. Currently, the bridge consists of a 60-foot deck plate girder, set onto concrete abutments. These concrete abutments use a number of construction joints, likely indicating various expansions to the structure. The bridge is constructed for ten tracks, and is set at a significant kink to match the channel of the creek. Due to the width of the bridge, a number of different variations of the deck plate girder design are present.

The eastern three tracks (tracks #1-3) appear to use a standard design, which was likely constructed as part of the 1924 reconstruction. Track #4 uses four girder lines, and appears to have been constructed using pieces originally fabricated in 1884. Tracks #5 and #6 use slightly different designs, which appear to date to approximately 1920. It is possible that track #4 was constructed using pieces from the original structure at the western tracks. Tracks #7 and #8 use a slightly lighter design, and appears to possibly date to 1890. Track #9 uses a two girder design, although the girders appear to be similar to track #4. The western track (track #10) appears to use a design similar to tracks #5 and #6. Because of the unusual geometry of the bridge, a number of tracks run at a skew. Portions of the abutments are skewed, curved and kinked. The entire bridge uses a ballast deck, which is mainly constructed of timber planks.

Deck plate girder bridges were popular for railroad use, as the design was durable and easy to construct. In addition, the simplicity of the design allowed for easy expansion and modifications to an existing structure. While the railroad likely would have preferred a culvert at this location, Sugar Creek is known for flooding and required a larger opening. In addition, the flow of Sugar Creek provided a critical source of water for the railroads shops. However, drawing water from this creek was the cause of a Typhoid outbreak in 1920. Since the 1924 reconstruction of the bridge, there have been little changes to the bridge. Sugar Creek was channelized in the late 1930s, although no significant alterations were required to the bridge. Currently, the bridge carries five tracks, and much of the original yard and shops have been removed. The original deck of the south tracks was replaced with a metal deck in approximately 2015. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the unusual configuration and history of this structure.