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Eads Bridge
The Eads Bridge is a combined road and rail bridge over the Mississippi River connecting the cities of St. Louis, Missouri, and East St. Louis, Illinois. It is located on the St. Louis riverfront between Laclede's Landing to the north, and the grounds of the Gateway Arch to the south. The bridge is named for its designer and builder, James Buchanan Eads. Work on the bridge began in 1867, and it was completed in 1874. The Eads Bridge was the first bridge across the Mississippi south of the Missouri River. Earlier bridges were located north of the Missouri, where the Mississippi is narrower. None of the earlier bridges survived, which means that the Eads Bridge is also the oldest bridge on the river.
To accommodate the massive size and strength of the Mississippi River, the Eads Bridge required a number of engineering feats. It pioneered the large-scale use of steel as a structural material, leading the shift from wrought-iron as the default material for large structures. Its foundations, more than 100 feet below water level, were the deepest underwater constructions at the time. They were installed using pneumatic caissons, a pioneering application of caisson technology in the United States and, at the time, by far the largest caissons ever built. Its 520-foot center arch was the longest rigid span ever built at the time. The arches were built suspended from temporary wooden towers, sometimes cited as the first use of the "cantilever principle" for a large bridge. These engineering principles were used for later bridges, including the Brooklyn Bridge, which began construction in 1870.
The Eads Bridge became a famous image of the city of St. Louis, superseded only by the Gateway Arch, completed in 1965. The highway deck was closed to automobiles from 1991 to 2003, but has been restored and now carries both vehicular and pedestrian traffic. It connects Washington Avenue in St. Louis with Riverpark Drive and East Broadway in East St. Louis. The former railroad deck now carries the St. Louis MetroLink light rail system, connecting Missouri and Illinois stations.
The bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a National Historic Landmark. As of April 2014, it carries about 8,100 vehicles daily, down 3,000 since the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge opened in February 2014.
The Eads Bridge was built by the Illinois and St. Louis Bridge Company. A subcontractor was the Keystone Bridge Company, founded in 1865 by Andrew Carnegie, which erected the steel superstructure.[page needed]
The growth of railroads since the Civil War had depressed river shipping trade, and Chicago was fast gaining as the center of commerce in the West. The bridge was envisioned to restore St. Louis' eminence as a center of commerce by connecting railroad and vehicle transportation across the river. Although he had no experience in building bridges, James Eads was chosen as chief engineer.
In an attempt to secure their future, steamboat interests successfully lobbied to place restrictions on bridge construction, requiring spans and heights previously unheard of. This was ostensibly to maintain sufficient operating room for steamboats beneath the bridge's base for the then foreseeable future. The unproclaimed purpose was to require a bridge so grand and lofty that it was impossible to erect according to conventional building techniques. The steamboat parties planned to prevent any structure from being built, in order to ensure continued dependence on river traffic to sustain commerce in the region.[citation needed]
Such a bridge required a radical design solution. The Mississippi River's strong current was almost 12+1⁄2 feet per second (3.8 m/s) and the builders had to battle ice floes in the winter. The ribbed arch had been a known construction technique for centuries. The triple span, tubular metallic arch construction was supported by two shore abutments and two mid-river piers. Four pairs of arches per span (upper and lower) were set eight feet (2.4 m) apart, supporting an upper deck for vehicular traffic and a lower deck for rail traffic.
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Eads Bridge
The Eads Bridge is a combined road and rail bridge over the Mississippi River connecting the cities of St. Louis, Missouri, and East St. Louis, Illinois. It is located on the St. Louis riverfront between Laclede's Landing to the north, and the grounds of the Gateway Arch to the south. The bridge is named for its designer and builder, James Buchanan Eads. Work on the bridge began in 1867, and it was completed in 1874. The Eads Bridge was the first bridge across the Mississippi south of the Missouri River. Earlier bridges were located north of the Missouri, where the Mississippi is narrower. None of the earlier bridges survived, which means that the Eads Bridge is also the oldest bridge on the river.
To accommodate the massive size and strength of the Mississippi River, the Eads Bridge required a number of engineering feats. It pioneered the large-scale use of steel as a structural material, leading the shift from wrought-iron as the default material for large structures. Its foundations, more than 100 feet below water level, were the deepest underwater constructions at the time. They were installed using pneumatic caissons, a pioneering application of caisson technology in the United States and, at the time, by far the largest caissons ever built. Its 520-foot center arch was the longest rigid span ever built at the time. The arches were built suspended from temporary wooden towers, sometimes cited as the first use of the "cantilever principle" for a large bridge. These engineering principles were used for later bridges, including the Brooklyn Bridge, which began construction in 1870.
The Eads Bridge became a famous image of the city of St. Louis, superseded only by the Gateway Arch, completed in 1965. The highway deck was closed to automobiles from 1991 to 2003, but has been restored and now carries both vehicular and pedestrian traffic. It connects Washington Avenue in St. Louis with Riverpark Drive and East Broadway in East St. Louis. The former railroad deck now carries the St. Louis MetroLink light rail system, connecting Missouri and Illinois stations.
The bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a National Historic Landmark. As of April 2014, it carries about 8,100 vehicles daily, down 3,000 since the Stan Musial Veterans Memorial Bridge opened in February 2014.
The Eads Bridge was built by the Illinois and St. Louis Bridge Company. A subcontractor was the Keystone Bridge Company, founded in 1865 by Andrew Carnegie, which erected the steel superstructure.[page needed]
The growth of railroads since the Civil War had depressed river shipping trade, and Chicago was fast gaining as the center of commerce in the West. The bridge was envisioned to restore St. Louis' eminence as a center of commerce by connecting railroad and vehicle transportation across the river. Although he had no experience in building bridges, James Eads was chosen as chief engineer.
In an attempt to secure their future, steamboat interests successfully lobbied to place restrictions on bridge construction, requiring spans and heights previously unheard of. This was ostensibly to maintain sufficient operating room for steamboats beneath the bridge's base for the then foreseeable future. The unproclaimed purpose was to require a bridge so grand and lofty that it was impossible to erect according to conventional building techniques. The steamboat parties planned to prevent any structure from being built, in order to ensure continued dependence on river traffic to sustain commerce in the region.[citation needed]
Such a bridge required a radical design solution. The Mississippi River's strong current was almost 12+1⁄2 feet per second (3.8 m/s) and the builders had to battle ice floes in the winter. The ribbed arch had been a known construction technique for centuries. The triple span, tubular metallic arch construction was supported by two shore abutments and two mid-river piers. Four pairs of arches per span (upper and lower) were set eight feet (2.4 m) apart, supporting an upper deck for vehicular traffic and a lower deck for rail traffic.