Future Sangamon Valley Trail - Lick Creek Bridge

View historic articles discussing the construction of this line (digitalized by Internet Archive)

Located on the near the former station of Lick northwest of Chatham, this historic deck truss bridge carries the abandoned former Chicago & North Western Railway line over Lick Creek. The first bridge at this location consisted of a 61 span timber pile trestle. Timber trestles were used extensively on this line, particularly at bridges located on large embankments. These temporary timber spans allowed the embankment to settle without damaging or destroying any permanent structures. The intention was to quickly replace the timber with concrete and metal bridges. By the early 1920s, most of the trestle spans on this line had been replaced with permanent construction. In 1919, a project was authorized to reconstruct the bridge. As part of the reconstruction, three secondhand iron deck truss spans would be installed, a 37-foot concrete arch abutment constructed on either end and new concrete piers constructed. Work on this project was reportedly completed in July 1921.

The bridge consists of two 125-foot and one 119-foot, 10-panel, riveted quadruple intersection lattice deck truss span, approached by a 37-foot concrete arch abutment at either end. The entire bridge is set onto concrete substructures, which were constructed by an unknown contractor. The deck truss spans were originally fabricated in 1883 by the Alden and Lassig Bridge & Iron Works, and were originally part of a bridge at Geneva, Illinois. The approaches use a variant of a skeleton abutment design, and do not appear to be true concrete arches. Skeleton abutments were occasionally used by railroads to help stabilize troublesome embankments. Often, these large concrete structures were required to be constructed monolithically. The approaches of this bridge appears to have been constructed monlithically, and consist of a superstructure, abutment and a large concrete pier at the truss span.

The Geneva bridge originally consisted of two 125-foot (spans B and C) and two 119-foot (spans A and D) double track iron lattice deck truss spans, each containing two outer "light" truss and one "heavy" center truss. Upon replacement of that bridge, the trusses were shipped to the bridge yard in Chicago. Here, all portions of the original structure were scrapped except for the trusses and outer cross frames. The two heavy 119-foot trusses were reconstructed into a single span, and installed at the nearby Spring Creek Bridge. The four long light trusses were combined into a single span, and installed as the south span of this bridge. The two long heavy trusses were combined into a single span, and installed as the center span of this bridge. The four short light trusses were combined into a single span, and installed as the north span of this bridge. During the reconstruction, the lateral bracing, interior cross bracing and floors were reconstructed with new material. The floorbeams of the southern and northern span appear to use scrap material, possibly from the original Geneva bridge. This is evidenced by cut marks and an unusual shape.

Railroads often reused bridge spans, as it provided a cost effective way to replace and maintain bridges without requiring large amounts of new steel. These spans were often rebuilt and modified to meet the requirements of the new location. The C&NW used this practice extensively, preferring to reuse spans where feasible. The rebuilt truss span used for this bridge represents an innovative way of maximizing the value of secondhand bridge spans. Lattice truss spans were rarely used by railroads in the United States, as traditional Pratt or Warren spans were more economical, easier to construct and had more predictable stresses within the structure. While most railroads avoided the use of lattice spans, the C&NW used the design nearly exclusively between the late 1870s and early 20th Century. The C&NW believed that the design provided greater redundancy in the event of a collision or derailment. Dozens of examples of different lattice style truss designs remain in use today along former C&NW lines. This span uses a quadruple intersection design, indicative of an earlier span. Later spans moved to triple and eventually double intersection variations. As of 2025, the bridge remains abandoned, although it is planned to be reused as part of the Sangamon Valley Trail. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being highly significant, due to the history and design of the structure.