The Caruthersville Bridge is a single tower

cantilever bridge A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using structures that project horizontally into space, supported on only one end (called cantilevers). For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beam (structure), beams; however, large cantilever ...

carrying Interstate 155 and U.S. Route 412 across the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

between Caruthersville, Missouri, and

Dyersburg, Tennessee Dyersburg is a city in and the county seat of Dyer County, Tennessee, United States. It is located in northwest Tennessee, northeast of Memphis on the Forked Deer River. The population was 16,164 at the 2020 census, down 5.72% from the 2010 ce ...

. Completed in 1976, it is the only bridge that connects Missouri and Tennessee, and the northernmost bridge on the

Lower Mississippi River The Lower Mississippi River is the portion of the Mississippi River downstream of Cairo, Illinois, Cairo, Illinois. From the Confluence (geography), confluence of the Ohio River and the Middle Mississippi River at Cairo, the Lower flows just u ...

. It stands downstream of the Cairo Mississippi River Bridge and upstream of the Hernando de Soto Bridge.

History

The bridge was first proposed in the early 1940s. A committee was created by both state legislatures to study the possibility of constructing the bridge in 1949. The site was chosen by the commission on November 18, 1952, which was subsequently approved by the Army Corps of Engineers on August 20, 1953. Construction of the bridge began in March 1969. The bridge cost and was opened on December 1, 1976, in a ceremony by Missouri Governor

Kit Bond Christopher Samuel Bond (March 6, 1939 – May 13, 2025) was an American attorney and politician from Missouri. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as a United States Senate, U.S. Senator from 1987 to 20 ...

and Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton. It is the only bridge to cross the Mississippi River between

Cairo, Illinois Cairo ( , sometimes ) is the southernmost city in the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat of Alexander County, Illinois, Alexander County. A river city, Cairo has the lowest elevation of any location in Illinois and is the only Illinoi ...

and

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, though the Dorena-Hickman Ferry also crosses the Mississippi in this area. It is also the only bridge to connect the states of

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

directly. Interstate 155 connects

(and the proposed

Interstate 69 Interstate 69 (I-69) is an Interstate Highway in the United States currently consisting of eight unconnected segments. The longest segment runs from Evansville, Indiana, northeast to the Canadian border in Port Huron, Michigan, and includ ...

) with

Interstate 55 Interstate 55 (I-55) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes. The ...

near Caruthersville, Missouri and Hayti, Missouri. U.S. Route 412, when created in 1982, was routed across the bridge.

References

* * Bridges over the Mississippi River Bridges completed in 1976 Buildings and structures in Pemiscot County, Missouri Road bridges in Missouri Road bridges in Tennessee Buildings and structures in Dyer County, Tennessee Interstate 55 Bridges on the Interstate Highway System Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System 1976 establishments in Missouri Cantilever bridges in the United States Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States 1976 establishments in Tennessee U.S. Route 412 {{Tennessee-bridge-struct-stub

History

See also

References