Metropolis Bridge

{{Short description|Bridge in Illinois and Kentucky}} {{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox Bridge |bridge_name= Metropolis Bridge |image=Metropolis Bridge 2022b.jpg |image_size= |caption= The bridge in 2022 |also_known_as= |carries=Single track of Paducah & Illinois Railroad (jointly owned by Canadian National Railway, BNSF Railway and Paducah & Louisville Railway) |crosses= Ohio River |locale= Metropolis, Illinois and McCracken County, Kentucky |maint=Canadian National Railway (Operations) BNSF Railway (Maintenance) |id= |design= Simple truss bridge, with plate-girder approaches | |length= {{convert|6424|ft|abbr=on}} (including approaches) |width= |clearance=|below= |traffic=Approximately 15 freight trains per day |open=1917 |closed= | mainspan = {{convert|708|ft|abbr=on}} |toll= |map_cue= |map_image= |map_text= |map_width= |coordinates = {{coord|37.14461|-88.74204|display=inline,title}} |}}

The '''Metropolis Bridge''' is a railroad bridge which spans the Ohio River at Metropolis, Illinois. Originally built for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, construction began in 1914 under the direction of engineer Ralph Modjeski.

The bridge consists of the following: (from north to south)

* Deck plate-girder approach spans * One riveted, 9-panel Parker through truss * Five pin-connected, Pennsylvania through trusses * One pin-connected, 8-panel Pratt deck truss * Deck plate-girder approach spans

Total length of the bridge is {{convert|6424|ft}}. The largest span stretches {{convert|708|ft}}, and remains the longest pin-connected simple through truss span in the world. Cost of the bridge when built was $4,000,000.

Not long after completion in 1917, ownership of the bridge was passed on to the Paducah and Illinois Railroad, a newly formed railroad jointly owned by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad and Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway. In 1925, the Illinois Central Railroad purchased a 1/3 share of the Paducah and Illinois Railroad, and assumed operations and maintenance, as the bridge served as an important link in their newly completed Edgewood-Fulton Cutoff route.

As of 2013, the bridge is still owned by the Paducah and Illinois Railroad, with operations managed by Illinois Central Railroad successor Canadian National Railway and bridge maintenance/inspection managed by the BNSF Railway, where it continues to see heavy use.

==References== * {{cite book | author=Cook, Richard J. | title=The Beauty of Railroad Bridges in North America -- Then and Now| publisher=Golden West Books, California (USA) | year=1987 | isbn=0-87095-097-5}}

==External links== * [http://bridgehunter.com/il/massac/metropolis/ Historic Bridges of the United States]

thumb|left|350px|Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad crossing of the Ohio River at Metropolis, Illinois -- now operated by the Canadian National Railway

{{Crossings navbox |structure = Bridges |place = Ohio River |bridge = Metropolis Bridge |bridge signs = ''Canadian National Railway'' |upstream = Interstate 24 Ohio River Bridge |upstream signs = 20px |downstream = Cairo Rail Bridge |downstream signs = ''Canadian National Railway'' }}

Category:Bridges completed in 1917 Category:Railroad bridges in Illinois Category:Railroad bridges in Kentucky Category:Buildings and structures in McCracken County, Kentucky Category:Buildings and structures in Massac County, Illinois Category:Bridges over the Ohio River Category:Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Category:Illinois Central Railroad Category:Louisville and Nashville Railroad Category:Metal bridges in the United States Category:Pennsylvania truss bridges in the United States Category:Pratt truss bridges in the United States Category:Parker truss bridges in the United States Category:1917 establishments in Illinois Category:1917 establishments in Kentucky Category:Transportation in Massac County, Illinois Category:Transportation in McCracken County, Kentucky