Connecting Cairo, Illinois are two significant cantilever truss automobile bridges to Kentucky and Missouri and replaced the last of the ferries that operated at the convergence of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. The first of the bridges to be completed was a crossing between Cairo and Missouri. Designed by Waddell & Hardesty and constructed by…
For decades, the only way to cross the Ohio River between Paducah, Kentucky, and Illinois was a narrow two-lane bridge. This was later supplemented with an interstate crossing that was plagued with problems.
The impoundment of the Tennessee River at Gilbertsville led to a significant change in the transportation landscape of western Kentucky.
Years ago, I journeyed to photograph the old Eggner’s Ferry and Lake Barkley Bridges in western Kentucky. Both have since been replaced with new arch spans.
Originally crossed by a ferry and later a double-decked bridge, a graceful through arch carries US 40 over the Susquehanna River in Maryland.
The influence of Robert W. Smith’s trusses extends to other areas of Ohio. One of my favorite examples is the Otway Covered Bridge over the Scioto Brush Creek in Otway.
Historic bridges and more are plenty in rural Vinton and Jackson counties in southern Ohio.
The passing of a heavy shower allowed for some passing fog that rapidly eased over the nearby mountaintops at Hawks Nest State Park in West Virginia. At its base, over the New River, are two Parker through trusses that carry CSX Railroad and Amtrak.
It’s been said that without the trees, mountains, fogs, or rains, the sun cannot create its own magic. On this mystical morning, the fog enveloping the New River Gorge Bridge was picture-perfect but I knew its time was short. Within minutes of taking these aerials, the thick fog had disappeared, replaced by a wide expanse of crystal clear skies.
Kentucky is a state with few 19th-century historic trusses remaining in its statewide bridge inventory. That’s why it was surprising to come across fairly rare trusses and a tunnel in Walbridge, Kentucky.