The Franklin–Orleans Street Bridge, commonly known as the Franklin Street Bridge, is a

bascule bridge A bascule bridge (also referred to as a drawbridge or a lifting bridge) is a moveable bridge with a counterweight that continuously balances a span, or leaf, throughout its upward swing to provide clearance for boat traffic. It may be single- o ...

over the

Chicago River The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of Chicago, including its center (the Chicago Loop). The river is one of the reasons for Chicago's geographic importance: the related Chic ...

, in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

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 ...

, United States. It was built in October 1920, and is located directly southwest of the

Merchandise Mart The Merchandise Mart (or the Merch Mart, or the Mart) is a commercial building in Chicago Loop, downtown Chicago, Illinois. When it opened in 1930, it was the List of largest buildings, world's largest building, with of floor space. The Art De ...

. Connecting the Near North Side with " The Loop," is at the junction of the branches of the river, lying directly west of the Wells Street Bridge. It carries four lanes of traffic in the northbound direction, and sidewalks are available on both sides of the bridge. Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Company was the contractor for the substructure, and the Ketler–Elliot Company was the contractor for the superstructure. Original electrical equipment was installed by C. H. Norwood. The bridge is an example of a trunnion

, with each half of the roadway is cantilevered out from shore abutments. The bridge is extremely efficient to operate. The bridge provided a new connection to the southern banks of the river and aided in westward expansion along

Wacker Drive Wacker Drive is a major multilevel street in Chicago, Illinois, running along the south side of the main branch and the east side of the south branch of the Chicago River in the Loop.Hayner, Don and Tom McNamee, ''Streetwise Chicago'', "Wacke ...

In popular culture

* The Franklin-Orleans Street Bridge was featured prominently in the 2005 film ''

Batman Begins ''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne (Dark Knight trilogy), Bruce Wayne / B ...

'' as the bridge that connects Gotham City with the Narrows. * The Franklin-Orleans Street Bridge was also featured in the 2014 film Divergent

References

External links

* {{Crossings navbox , structure=Crossings , place=

, bridge=Franklin Street Bridge , bridge signs= , upstream= Wells Street Bridge , upstream signs= Chicago Transit Authority Logo

, downstream= Lake Street Bridge and Milwaukee–Dearborn subway
(

South Branch Chicago River The Chicago River is a system of rivers and canals with a combined length of that runs through the city of Chicago, including its center (the Chicago Loop). The river is one of the reasons for Chicago's geographic importance: the related Chic ...

) , downstream signs= Chicago Transit Authority Logo

, note= 1920 establishments in Illinois Bascule bridges in Illinois Bridges completed in 1920 Bridges in Chicago Historic American Engineering Record in Chicago Road bridges in Illinois Steel bridges in the United States

In popular culture

See also

References

External links