UP Wilson Creek Bridge #3

Located on the west side of Knapp, this deck plate girder bridge carries the former Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railway mainline across Wilson Creek and 160th Avenue. The first bridge at this location was likely a timber pile trestle, located further south where present-day US Highway 12 crosses Wilson Creek. It is likely that this bridge was replaced by an iron bridge in the 1890s. In 1912, the Omaha Road began a double tracking project, and would realign the railroad in this area. The old railroad grade was sold to the State of Wisconsin, and a new two span steel bridge constructed further north. After severe flooding in September 1942, the bridge was severely damaged. The bridge would be repaired in 1943 by adding an additional span on the east end, giving the structure its current configuration. Currently, the bridge consists of a 60-foot deck plate girder span, approached by a 30-foot deck plate girder span on the west end and a 40-foot span on the east end. The entire bridge is set onto concrete substructures. American Bridge Company fabricated the center and west span, while an unknown contractor constructed the east span. It is unknown if the east span was reused from another location, or if the material was placed here new. Unknown contractors constructed the concrete substructures. During the 1943 reconstruction, the original east abutment was replaced with a new pier, and a new east abutment constructed. The bridge uses three different standard variations of the deck plate girder design. The west span uses a shallow design, with triangular risers above the west pier. The center span uses deeper girders, while the east span also uses deep girders. Deck plate girder spans were commonly used by railroads, as they were durable and easy to construct. Overall, the bridge appears to be in fair to good condition, with no significant deterioration noted. The author has ranked this bridge as being locally significant, due to the common design.