Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge

Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge

Bluff Dale bridge, as seen from the modern bridge that has replaced it for vehicle traffic.
Carries Pedestrian way
Crosses Paluxy River
Locale Bluff Dale, Texas
Characteristics
Design Cable-stayed
Material Wrought iron
Total length 200 feet (61 m)
Width 13 feet (4.0 m)
Longest span 140 feet (43 m)
No. of spans 3
Piers in water 2
History
Designer Edwin Elijah Runyon
Construction start 1890
Construction end 1890
Bluff Dale Bridge[lower-alpha 1]
Location Spanning the Paluxy River on County Road 49 (Berry's Creek Rd.)
Bluff Dale, Texas, USA
Coordinates 32°21′14″N 98°1′34″W / 32.35389°N 98.02611°W / 32.35389; -98.02611Coordinates: 32°21′14″N 98°1′34″W / 32.35389°N 98.02611°W / 32.35389; -98.02611
Built 1891
NRHP Reference # 77001440[2]
TSAL # 250
Significant dates
Added to NRHP December 20, 1977
Designated TSAL 5/28/1981

The Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge is a historic bridge located near Bluff Dale, Texas, United States. The bridge was built in 1891 and the spans 225 feet (69 m) across the Paluxy River. The road deck is 28 feet (8.5 m) above the river and held in place by fourteen one-inch cables attached to the towers made of nine-inch iron pipe.

History

The bridge was originally constructed across the river on a dirt road that became Texas state highway 10, which is now U.S. Route 377. In 1933, a new bridge was built to handle the increasing traffic on U.S. 377. The old bridge was relocated in 1934, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) upstream and extended from 200 to 225 feet (61 to 69 m).[3]

The bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 20, 1977. The bridge is on Preservation Texas' 2009 list of most endangered places due to its poor condition and lack of funds for restoration. It was closed to vehicular traffic in 1989 because of its advanced state of deterioration.[4]

Structure type

Despite the name given in Historic American Engineering Record documentation, the Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge is actually a cable-stayed structure.[5] Its deck is suspended from multiple layers of stay cables radiating from the towers, some terminating at the deck and others running continuously from one tower to the other. This pattern of cables was established in designer Edwin Elijah Runyon's first U.S. patent, No. 394,940.[6] It is known as one of only two examples of Runyon's patents, along with the Barton Creek Bridge in Huckabay, Texas. Its hand-twisted wire cable and non-traditional use of wrought-iron pipe components make it a notable example of vernacular American bridge construction.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ The bridge's historic name as listed on the National Register was changed from "Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge" to "Bluff Dale Bridge" on January 19, 2016.[1]

References

  1. ↑ National Park Service (January 29, 2016), Weekly List of Actions Taken on Properties: 1/19/16 through 1/22/16, archived from the original on January 28, 2016, retrieved January 28, 2016.
  2. ↑ National Park Service (2006-03-15). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  3. ↑ "Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge" Texas Historic Sites Atlas. Retrieved Aug 26, 2009.
  4. ↑ "Preservation Texas: Most Endangered Places 2009". Archived from the original on 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2009-05-20.
  5. ↑ Brown, Mark M. (August 1996). "Bluff Dale Suspension Bridge" (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-10-18. Retrieved 2014-04-27.
  6. ↑ Stephen G. Buonopane and Mark M. Brown, "History and Engineering Analysis of the 1890 Cable-Stayed Bluff Dale Bridge," in Proceedings of the First International Congress on Construction History (Madrid: Instituto Juan de Herrera, 2003): 433-442.
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