The Intercity Bridge, more commonly known as the Ford Parkway Bridge (and sometimes referred to as the 46th Street Bridge by residents of

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

), is a reinforced concrete

arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its structural load, loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either si ...

that spans 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

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

and

St. Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (often abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 311,527, making it Minnesota's second-most populous city a ...

, United States. It connects 46th Street in Minneapolis with Ford Parkway in Saint Paul. The bridge is historically significant as one of the largest reinforced concrete bridges ever built in Minnesota. It was built in 1925-1927 by James O. Heyworth, Inc. and was designed by Martin Sigvart Grytbak. The Intercity Bridge was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1989. It is notable as one of the monumental concrete rib-arch bridges spanning the high river bluffs along the

, along with the

Franklin Avenue Bridge The Franklin Avenue Bridge, officially the F.W. Cappelen Memorial Bridge, carries Franklin Avenue over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was designed by Frederick William Cappelen, assisted by Kristoffer Olsen Oustad, both ...

, the Third Avenue Bridge, the

10th Avenue Bridge The 10th Avenue Bridge crosses the Mississippi River near downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota and also in proximity to the University of Minnesota. The bridge was historically referred to as the Cedar Avenue Bridge in the days prior to the construc ...

, and the Robert Street Bridge. The bridge was originally built to service Ford's

Twin Cities Assembly Plant The Twin Cities Assembly Plant was a Ford Motor Company manufacturing facility in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States, that operated from 1925 to 2011. In 1912, Ford's first assembly and sales activities in Minnesota began in a former warehouse i ...

, so Minneapolis residents could commute to the Ford plant. The Ford plant, along with Lock and Dam No. 1, was expected to make the Highland Park area of St. Paul extremely desirable. As part of the planned development, St. Paul expanded the original street, Edsel Avenue, and renamed it Ford Parkway. The bridge project was designed by a committee of politicians and engineers from both Minneapolis and St. Paul and chaired by Charles M. Babcock, Minnesota's first commissioner of highways. The development that was expected as a result of the bridge did not materialize, however, because of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

and growth in Minneapolis neighborhoods on the opposite side of the bridge. It was not until after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

that the desired growth in the Highland Park area resulted from the bridge. In 1972-1973, the bridge was redecked and widened, but this did not detract from the historic significance of the bridge. In 2004, the bridge was rebuilt from the arches up. The rebuilding project was given an award by the Minnesota Society of Professional Engineers in 2006.

Pictures

Image:IntercityBridge.jpg, A view from the south side, with the powerhouse of the Ford Dam in the foreground. Image:Intercity Bridge.jpg, A view from underneath the bridge on the St. Paul side, looking west. Image:Intercity_Bridge_Plaque.JPG, Plaque commemorating the construction of the Intercity Bridge on the St. Paul side.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Bridges completed in 1927 Bridges in Minneapolis Bridges in Saint Paul, Minnesota Bridges over the Mississippi River Concrete bridges in the United States Mississippi Gorge National Register of Historic Places in Mississippi National River and Recreation Area National Register of Historic Places in Minneapolis National Register of Historic Places in Saint Paul, Minnesota Open-spandrel deck arch bridges in the United States Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Shared-use paths in Minneapolis

Pictures

See also

References