Bridgeport Bridge

The Bridgeport Bridge carries a pedestrian path along State Street in Bridgeport, Michigan.

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The Bridgeport Bridge carries a pedestrian path along State Street in Bridgeport, Michigan.

Originally built for horsedrawn carriages and later automobiles, the Pratt through truss was constructed in 1906 by the Joliet Bridge & Iron Company of Joliet, Illinois. ³ The bridge cost $7,995 and was financed through tolls, which fully retired the debt by 1913. The crossing was closed to automobile traffic in 1976 but remained open to pedestrians. ²

Restoration began in January 2010 as part of a $2.3 million project. ¹ Funding included a $1.5 million federal Transportation Enhancement Program grant, $430,000 in state transportation funds, $350,000 from Bridgeport Township’s Downtown Development Authority, and $100,000 from Bridgeport Township. ² The work required dismantling the structure, transporting it to Bach Ornamental and Structural Steel for refurbishment, and returning it for reassembly on site. ¹ A deteriorated pier was also rebuilt after it was found to be rotating and at risk of causing a superstructure collapse.

The bridge is one of six surviving late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century multi-span through truss highway bridges remaining in the state, and one of only two examples manufactured by the Joliet Bridge & Iron Company. ¹

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Details

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Sources

1. Holth, Nathan. “Bridgeport Bridge.” Historicbridges.org, article.
2. Gilchrist, Tom. “Bridgeport looks to save the bridge that’s the village’s symbol.” Saginaw News, 6 Sept. 2009.
3. “History of the Badge.” Bridgeport Township, article.