Manitowoc Railroad Crossing (East)

Located on the north side of Manitowoc, this through truss bridge carries the former Chicago & North Western Railway (C&NW) line from Manitowoc to Appleton and Two Rivers over the former Soo Line Manitowoc Branch. When the Wisconsin Central Railway extended from Hilbert Junction to Manitowoc, a crossing of the existing C&NW line was needed . Due to the grade differences, it was decided to construct a grade separated crossing. Since the WC was the later railroad built, the WC was required to pay for the construction of the underpass. It is likely that the C&NW required that the bridge carrying their tracks to be designed per their specifications, and railroad records indicate that the WC and later Soo Line were required to maintain the structure. Work on the bridge began in late 1895, and the bridge was completed in 1896. Due to the acute angle that the railroads crossed, a longer through truss span was required instead of a plate girder bridge. While the truss span uses a lattice design which was standard for the C&NW, the span has a number of unique differences from lattice spans constructed by the C&NW. Currently, the bridge consists of a 132-foot, riveted quadrangular lattice through truss span, set onto stone abutments. The truss span is constructed of a number of a combination of built-up beams and solid bars, uses an unusual floor system and contains portal bracings which are different from other C&NW-designed lattice truss spans.

The top chord of the truss span is composed of a built-up beam, with X-lacing on the bottom and a solid plate on the top. The endposts also use a similar design, with X-lacing on the bottom and a solid plate on the outside. Similar to other lattice truss bridges from this era, the bottom chord is composed of two parallel channels, although they are not connected by any lacing or plates. The diagonal members of the bridge follow two different designs, with the tension members comprised of L-shaped steel bars and the compression members constructed of tightly V-laced built-up beams. The floor system of the bridge is unusual, with the bottom chord sitting above the floorbeams. In addition, the truss lines are set further apart than similar aged lattice truss spans. The stringers are composed of two steel stringers, with each stringer placed outside of the rails. The floorbeams are composed of shallow plate girders, which are connected to the bottom chord by a trapezoidal shaped gusset plate. From the mid-1880s to the turn of the 20th Century, lattice trusses constructed for the C&NW exclusively used a "Lassig-style" portal bracing, with a pedimented lattice bar, a solid center plate and heel bracing with decorative flower-shaped cutouts. The portal bracing of this bridge follows a similar design, which appears to have been modified to prevent a potential patent infringement of the Lassig style portal. Instead of using thin bars for the pedimented lattice bar, this bridge uses L-shaped bars. In addition, the top of the portal is more rounded, and the solid center plate contains a cutout and three sets of five decorative holes on the top and the bottom. Unlike the Lassig style heel bracing, the heel bracing on this bridge uses a triangular plate, with a decorative cutout consisting of a circle surrounded by three different sized triangles. Both the upper lateral bracing and the lower lateral bracing consist of square steel bars, typical for trusses using this design. The abutments use an unusual design due to the geometry, consisting of a lengthy stepped wing wall on the northwest and southeast corners, and no wing wall on the remaining corners. These wing walls extend parallel to the railroad underneath, and stone for the abutments appears to be constructed of a white limestone quarried at Duck Creek, Wisconsin.

Because the WC awarded the contract for bridge work on this line to the Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Company, it is believed that this company fabricated the truss span. In addition, the abutments were constructed by the Butler-Ryan Company, a firm which did significant work for the WC. It is believed that the truss span was designed by Robert B. Tweedy, Chief Engineer of the Wisconsin Central Railway and was based on the standard C&NW lattice truss design. This type of truss design is relatively uncommon throughout the United States. However, a few railroads preferred the design, such as the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railway (Rock Island), the Chicago & North Western Railway (C&NW) and the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railway (Omaha Road). Spans constructed in the early 1880s for the C&NW featured an arched and pedimented lattice portal bracing, light sway bracing and laced members. The second generation was nearly exclusively constructed by Lassig Bridge & Iron Works between 1884 and 1900, and featured heavier members and a pedimented portal bracing. Between the mid-1870s and late 1920s, the C&NW used this design nearly exclusively, due to its strength and resilience if damaged. It is believed that this span is among the only lattice trusses ever constructed by the Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Company, and is likely the product of a unique agreement between the C&NW and WC. The similarities and differences between this span and a standard Lassig-designed C&NW span are likely the result of Robert B. Tweedy slightly redesigning the standard C&NW design, possibly to avoid infringing on an existing patent. Since the initial construction, the bridge has seen no significant alterations. Today, both the railroad above and railroad below are abandoned with the tracks removed. It is unknown what the future holds for this unique bridge, although the author hopes that it can be preserved or possibly be reused as part of a pedestrian trail. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being regionally significant, due to the unique variation of a standard truss design.