Old Bridge Still Swings

Title

Subject

Local news

Description

Trains, like the one at top, have steamed across this bridge for nearly nine decades. It is the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad swing bridge. The Council Bluffs span was built in 1893. A second span, on the Omaha side, was built in 1904 when the Missouri River channel changed. Both spans were used to open the bridge over the river. However, the river channel changed again and today only the Council Bluffs span swings out over the river. The Omaha span remains in use, but not as a swing span. The bridge was built by Sooysmith Co. and the Phoenix Bridge Co. for the Omaha Bridge and Terminal Railroad, a subsidiary of Illinois Central. It is one of two swing bridges built by the companies and considered to be one of the largest of its kind in the United States. Council Bluffs' span is manned Monday through Saturday by Bernardo Benavides. In center photo, he is retracting the tracks so the bridge can be opened as shown in bottom photo. He says it takes 15-20 minutes to swing the span out over the river. The bridge is electrically operated. Benavides began his career with Illinois Central more than 28 years ago. He has been the bridge tender for the past eight years.

Creator

Nonpareil photos

Source

Daily Nonpareil September 8, 1979

Publisher

Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil Archives

Date

1979-09-08

Format

Black and white photograph

Type

Photograph

Identifier

Illinois_Central_Bridge_09_08_1979_002.jpg
Illinois_Central_Bridge_09_08_1979_003.jpg
Illinois_Central_Bridge_09_08_1979_004.jpg

Coverage

Council Bluffs, Iowa

Rights

The Council Bluffs Public Library is unaware of any claim of copyright in the images in the collection. We encourage use of these materials under the fair use clause of the Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. § 101 et seq). The Council Bluffs Public Library has provided in the catalog records for these materials all known information regarding the photographer or other persons associated with the materials. This information is provided as a service to aid users in determining the appropriate use of an item, but that determination ultimately rests with the user.