BNSF Salt Creek Bridge (Ashland, North)

Once located on the north side of Ashland, this through truss bridge carried the BNSF Sioux City Subdivision across Salt Creek. The previous bridge at this location was a three span deck plate girder span, consisting of 1-100' and 2-40' deck plate girder spans, constructed in 1906. It is believed that this bridge was destroyed in a flood in 1952, and the bridge would be replaced. In 1952, a 107-foot 5-panel riveted Pratt through truss span was installed on timber piers, with a 50-foot steel stringer span approaching each side. The remainder of the bridge consisted of timber pile trestle spans. The truss utilized a design standard to the CB&Q during the 1900s and 1910s, using riveted connections, heavy members and the standard CB&Q portal. This particular portal bracing design utilizes a shallow lattice design, with angular heel bracing. This particular portal design appears to have been a CB&Q standard, and was used on truss bridges from the 1890s until the 1930s. It is believed that this truss span was fabricated in approximately 1905, at an unknown location. Railroads often reused spans, particularly in cases of emergency where a bridge quickly needed to be repaired and reopened to traffic. The bridge would be replaced in 2019, to both widen the channel and in response to the poor condition of the bridge. Photos of the replacement process can be seen here. At the time of replacement, the bridge appeared to be in fair to poor condition, with the timber substructures deteriorating. The author has ranked this bridge as being moderately significant, due to the truss design.