Frisco Bridge

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**Frisco Bridge**
Memphis-Arkansas Memorial Bridge, left Frisco Bridge, center Harahan Bridge, right
Carries	Rail line
Crosses	Mississippi River
Locale	West Memphis, Arkansas and Memphis, Tennessee
Maintained by	BNSF Railway
Design	Cantilever bridge
Longest span	790 ft
Total length	2597 ft
Width	30 ft
Clearance below	75 ft
Opening date	May 12, 1892
Coordinates	35°07′43″N, 90°04′35″W

The Frisco Bridge, previously known as the Memphis Bridge, is a cantilever bridge carrying a rail line across the Mississippi River between West Memphis, Arkansas and Memphis, Tennessee.

1 Construction
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Construction

At the time of the Memphis bridge construction, it was a significant technological challenge and is considered to be chief engineer George S. Morison's crowning achievement. No other bridges had ever been attempted on the Lower Mississippi River. Besides the difficulty of crossing this far south, Morison was required to provide at least 75 feet clearance, have a main span of more than 770 ft for the main river channel. He was also required to provide for vehicular and pedestrian traffic on the same level as the rail traffic. Construction for the Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad began in 1888 and was completed May 12, 1892. In the end the project created a bridge that was the farthest south on the Mississippi River, featured the longest span in the United States and cost nearly 3 million dollars.^[1] A testament to its design and construction, as of 2006 the bridge is still used by BNSF Railway. The bridge is listed as a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark. ^[2]