Photos
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Overview The bridge acts as a memorial to Fort Dearborn. Photo taken by James McCray in August 2007 |
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Drawbridge Gear Tower The gear tower is a museum. The tower also is a memorial to Old Fort Dearborn, which was located at the south entrance to the bridge. Photo taken by James McCray in February 2008 |
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General View Of Bridge From The Southeast Bank Of The Chicago River Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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View Of Bridge From Southwest Bank Of The Chicago River Looking North; Equitable Building (Center) And Tribune Tower (Left) Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Deck Truss, West Side Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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General View Of Portals Looking North Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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South Portal Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Interior Of Control Room Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Interior Of Control Room Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'The Discovers', Mural Commemorating Jolliet, Father Marquette, Lasalle And Tonty Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Defense', Mural Commemorating The Defense Of Fort Dearborn Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Pioneers' Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Bas-Relief Decoration, 'Regeneration,' Mural Commemorating The Rebuilding Of Chicago After The Great Fire Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Trunnion Girder (Left) And Counterweight (Right), North Span Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Gears With Trunnion Gear In Background, North Span Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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General View Of Electric Motors, North Span Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Electric Motor And Gear Set, North Span Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Detail Of Trunnion Girder And Hinges Photo taken by Historic American Engineering Record |
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Deck View Looking Northeast Yes, the tour bus is exactly what you might think it is. No, I've not taken the tour. You're on your own. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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West Pedestrian Walkway This is the south portal to The Magnificent Mile, which explains the shopping bags. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Center Joint Looking east, toward Lake Michigan. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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East Elevation That's the Trump International Hotel & Tower straight ahead, just beyond the subject bridge. The white building to the right of it is the Wrigley Building. Behind the Turmp Tower is the building formerly known as the IBM Plaza and behind it are the two towers of Marina City. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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East Lower Deck Walkway and deck truss detail Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Fenced-in Lifting Mechanism Ever since the City of Chicago evicted a guy who was living under the bridge a few years ago, they have stepped up their efforts to keep people out of the mechanism. The guy had a regular apartment built under the bridge, including an extension cord that went to the bridge tender's house, providing power for a television and a microwave oven. The squatter reported that the first time the bridge went up he was rather nervous, but after several hundred openings, it was no big deal. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Lower Wacker Drive Looking west. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Barrel Shot Looking North Lower Michigan Avenue as seen from Lower Wacker Drive. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Trunion Detail Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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West Lower Pedestrian Walkway and Deck Truss Detail Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Detail of Lower Center Mating Joint Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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North Abutment Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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West Facing As seen from the river Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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South Leaf Truss Detail Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Historical Marker For the text of this plaque, see the photo below. Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
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Photo taken by J.R. Manning in May 2010 |
Map
- Google Maps
- Google Street View (if available)
- Yahoo! Maps
- Bing Maps
- MSR Maps
- OpenStreetMap
Facts
- Overview
- Bascule bridge over Main Branch Chicago River on Michigan Avenue in Chicago
- Location
- Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
- Status
- Open to traffic
- History
- Built 1920
- Design
- Bascule Pratt deck truss
- Dimensions
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Length of largest span: 255.8 ft.
Total length: 398.8 ft.
Deck width: 64.0 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 13.5 ft.
- Recognition
- Posted to the National Register of Historic Places
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +41.88861, -87.62417 (decimal degrees)
41°53'19" N, 87°37'27" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 16/448217/4637597 (zone/easting/northing)
- USGS topographic map
- Chicago Loop OE E
- Inventory numbers
- IL 016-6035 (Illinois bridge number)
BH 15152 (Bridgehunter.com ID) - Inspection (as of 10/2007)
- Deck condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Superstructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Satisfactory (6 out of 9)
Appraisal: Functionally obsolete
Sufficiency rating: 71.9 (out of 100) - Average daily traffic (as of 2006)
- 33,300
Update Log
- May 17, 2010: New photos from J.R. Manning
- February 4, 2008: New photos from James McCray
Sources
- James McCray - jamesinslocomb [at] yahoo [dot] com
- HAER IL-37 - Chicago River Bascule Bridge, Michigan Avenue, Spanning Chicago River at North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, Cook County, IL
- James Baughn - webmaster [at] bridgehunter [dot] com
- J.R. Manning - thekitchenguy [at] sbcglobal [dot] net
