The Champ Clark Bridge is a steel

girder bridge A girder bridge is a bridge that uses girders as the means of supporting its deck. The two most common types of modern steel girder bridges are plate and box. The term "girder" is often used interchangeably with "beam" in reference to bridge d ...

over 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 ...

connecting

Louisiana, Missouri Louisiana is a city in Pike County, Missouri, United States. The population was 3,364 at the 2010 census. Louisiana is located in northeast Missouri, on the Mississippi River, south of Hannibal. Louisiana is located at the junction of State Ro ...

with Pike County,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

. It carries

U.S. Route 54 U.S. Route 54 (US 54) is an east–west United States Highway that runs northeast–southwest for from El Paso, Texas, to Griggsville, Illinois. The Union Pacific Railroad's Tucumcari Line (former Southern Pacific Railroad, Southern Pacific an ...

northeast to

Pittsfield, Illinois Pittsfield is a city in and the county seat of Pike County, Illinois, United States. The population was 4,206 at the 2020 census, a decrease from 4,576 in 2010. History Pittsfield was initially settled by settlers from New England. These sett ...

, where U.S. 54 terminates. It opened on August 3, 2019, replacing an older bridge of the same name.

History

The bridge is named after James Beauchamp Clark, a former

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hung ...

from

Bowling Green, Missouri Bowling Green is a city and the county seat of Pike County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,334 at the 2010 census. History Bowling Green was settled in 1819, and designated county seat in 1824. Settled chiefly by migrants from K ...

. Clark served as Speaker from 1911 to 1919. The original bridge had opened in 1928 and had, over the years, grown functionally obsolete and structurally deficient. Its replacement was the current bridge, completed in 2019.

Design and construction

The new bridge was designed by

HNTB HNTB Corporation is an American infrastructure design firm. Founded in 1914 in Kansas City, Missouri, HNTB began with the partnership made by Ernest Emmanuel Howard with the firm Waddell & Harrington, founded in 1907. One of the most trusted U. ...

and constructed by Massman Construction Co., both of

Kansas City, MO Kansas City, Missouri, abbreviated KC or KCMO, is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri by List of cities in Missouri, population and area. The city lies within Jackson County, Missouri, Jackson, Clay County, Missouri, Clay, and Pl ...

. It was completed under a design-build contract, where both companies performed their work under a single contract with the owner.

References

, bridge = Champ Clark Bridge (2019) , bridge signs = , upstream = Champ Clark Bridge (1928) , upstream signs = Former , downstream = Louisiana Rail Bridge , downstream signs = ''Canadian Pacific Kansas City'' Truss bridges in the United States Road bridges in Illinois Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System Bridges over the Mississippi River Bridges completed in 1928 Buildings and structures in Pike County, Missouri Bridges in Pike County, Illinois Road bridges in Missouri U.S. Route 54 2019 establishments in Missouri Steel bridges in the United States Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States 2019 establishments in Illinois

History

Design and construction

References

See also