Genoa Railroad Crossing

Located on the west side of Genoa, this large girder bridge carries the former Illinois Central Railroad over the former Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway. The first bridge at this location was likely a wooden trestle, completed when the IC line was constructed. By the early 1920s, that bridge had become inadequate for traffic, and the current structure was constructed. The bridge consists of a 73-foot through plate girder span, approached by a 34-foot deck plate girder span on the west end, and a 35-foot deck plate girder span on the east end. The bridge is set onto concrete abutments and unique triangular steel towers. An 18-foot through plate girder span is set onto the wide face of each tower, which compensates for the heavy skew of the structure. American Bridge Company fabricated the steel for the bridge, while Joseph E. Nelson & Sons constructed the concrete abutments and footings.

Due to the heavy skew of the structure, there are a number of unusual features of this bridge. The through girder uses a typical design for the Illinois Central, with squared girder ends and a metal deck floor constructed of sheet metal set onto transverse I-beams, which are connected to the girders. The approach spans use a standard girder design, with a reinforced concrete floor. The towers are unusual, as only one face of each tower is the "wide" face. These towers are heavily reinforced, using rolled steel channels and heavy slotted lacing. The concrete abutments are exceptionally deep, which helps prevent erosion and settling on the large approach embankments. This design of bridge was commonly used by railroads throughout the United States, as it was well suited for bridges in any number of unusual configurations. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked the bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design and newer age.