Waddell "A" Truss Bridge (Parkville, Missouri)

Waddell "A" Truss Bridge
Waddell "A" Truss Bridge
Coordinates	39°11′10″N 94°40′55″W / 39.186°N 94.682°W
Carries	Pedestrian path ; (Formerly railroad)
Crosses	Rush Creek
Locale	Parkville, MO
Other name(s)	Linn Branch Creek Bridge
Named for	John Alexander Waddell
Characteristics
Design	Truss
Material	Steel
Total length	100 ft (30m)
Width	14 ft (4.3 m)
Height	40 ft (12 m)
History
Designer	J.A.L. Waddell, Consulting Engineer
Constructed by	Pencoyd Iron Works
Opened	1898
	Waddell "A" Truss Bridge
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Built	1898
Architectural style	Waddell "A" Truss Bridge
Restored	November 21, 1987
Restored by	University of Missouri at Kansas City
NRHP reference No.	90002173
Added to NRHP	January 25, 1991
Location

The Waddell "A" Truss Bridge, also known by its original name of Linn Branch Creek Bridge is one of two surviving examples of the "A" Truss Bridge type originated by John Alexander Low Waddell. It was originally completed in 1898 near Trimble, Missouri, and is currently located at English Landing Park in Parkville, Platte County, Missouri. The bridge was relocated in 1987 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

History

Originally spanning Linn Branch Creek on the eastern outskirts of Trimble, Missouri, the bridge was built from U.S. patent 529,220,^[1] which was an early standardized design of the famed engineer J.A.L. Waddell. It carried a single-tracked segment of the Quincy, Omaha, and Kansas City Railroad between Plattsburg and Trimble. The structure was fabricated by the Pencoyd Iron Works of Philadelphia, and it operated in railroad configuration for over 40 years until the line was abandoned in 1939.^[2]^: 11

In 1953, the Missouri Highway Department renovated the bridge deck to roadway and repurposed the rail line for Missouri State Route 4. By 1972, construction on the future Smithville Lake had begun, rendering the road defunct and threatening the bridge's future. Shortly before the reservoir was impounded in 1979, the bridge was determined eligible to be listed among the National Register of Historic Places. It was catalogued by the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER)^[3] before being marked, disassembled, and stored by United States Army Corps of Engineers in 1980.^[2]^: 5

The bridge was restored and reassembled at its current location, English Landing Park, in 1987 at a cost of $1,500. The restoration was a volunteer effort led by civil engineering professor George F. W. Hauck of the University of Missouri–Kansas City, with the assistance of students and other industry professionals. The project won the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) "Outstanding Civil Engineering Award of Merit" in 1989,^[2]^: 5 and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.^[2]

The other surviving Waddell "A" Truss bridge spans the Cross Bayou in Shreveport, Louisiana. Now abandoned, the bridge once carried the Kansas City Southern Railway across the bayou. It has been listed on the National Register as Kansas City Southern Railroad Bridge, Cross Bayou, and is recognized as a historic site by the City of Shreveport.^[4]

^ Jackson, Donald C. "Waddell 'A' Truss Bridge" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. p. 1. Retrieved February 2, 2021.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Hauck, George F. W.; Gilleard, Gerald Lee; Mitchell, Steve; Fleming, Beverly (August 1990). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form" (PDF). US National Archives. NRHP-90002173. United States Department of the Interior (published January 25, 1991). Archived (PDF) from the original on January 9, 2015. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
^ "Waddell "A" Truss Bridge, English Landing Park, Parkville, Platte County, MO". Historic American Engineering Record (Library of Congress). Retrieved June 1, 2021.
^ "Abandoned Rails of Shreveport".

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