Historic Bridges

Year constructed: 1937
Bridge type: deck plate girder
National Register of Historic Places status: Eligible
Length: 750 feet
Width: 68 feet
Spans: 6
FHWA: 040500
Jurisdiction: Iowa DOT; District 1; Jeremey Vortherms (Assistant District Engineer; Jeremey.Vortherms@iowadot.us; 515-233-7851)
Location: IUS 69 (SE Fourteenth Street) over the Des Moines River, located in the City of Des Moines

Details

The The US 69 (SE Fourteenth Street) Bridge (FHWA #040500; 77-03894) was built between 1936 and rehabilitated in 1973. It is classified as a steel continuous stringer/multi-beam or girder design. The 1973 bridge rehabilitation added three girders to widen the bridge from 42 ft to 56 ft. These three girders were added to the middle of the original six girders, the piers were modified with a concrete bracket on either side to allow for the additional width. The rehabilitation also added lighting to the bridge, replaced the roadbed, sidewalks, railings, and added a concrete median. The bridge was recommended eligible for the NRHP under Criteria A and C. Eligibility was determined under Criterion A for its “importance as a critical component of one of the earliest attempts to redirect through traffic away from Des Moines’ central business district,” its association with the Works Progress Administration and other important New Deal programs, and under Criterion C as an important early example of continuous steel girder bridge construction in Iowa and an important early bridge design of Sverdrup and Parcel.