Black Hawk Bridge

The Black Hawk Bridge spans the Mississippi River, joining the town of Lansing, in Allamakee County, Iowa, to rural Crawford County, Wisconsin. It is the northernmost Mississippi River bridge in Iowa.

Black Hawk Bridge
Coordinates43°21′55″N 91°12′54″W
Carries2 lanes of IA 9 and WI 82
CrossesUpper Mississippi River
LocaleLansing, Iowa and Crawford County, Wisconsin, River Mile 663.4
Other name(s)Lansing Bridge
Maintained byIowa and Wisconsin Departments of Transportation
ID numberNBI 000000000013520
Characteristics
DesignCantilever through truss
Total length1,653 feet (504 m)
Width21 feet (6 m), 2 Lanes
Longest span200 m
Clearance below68 feet (21 m)
History
OpenedJune 17, 1931
Statistics
Daily traffic2,357 (2003)
TollNone

Named for Chief Black Hawk, it is popularly referred to as the "Lansing bridge". It carries Iowa Highway 9 and Wisconsin Highway 82.

This riveted cantilever through truss bridge[1] has one of the more unusual designs of any Mississippi River bridge. Construction started in 1929 and was completed in 1931. The designer and chief engineer was Melvin B. Stone. The McClintic-Marshall Company of Chicago erected the trusses. The steel came from the Inland Steel Company.

The Wisconsin approach has a long causeway over Winneshiek bottoms (sloughs, ponds, and backwaters) before ramping up to the bridge itself. The main shipping channel is on the Iowa side. The Iowa approach is rather abrupt, going from a 25 mph city street straight up a steep ramp onto the bridge.

Originally a privately built and operated bridge owned by the Iowa-Wisconsin Bridge Company, it was closed between 1945 and 1957, due to damage from ice damming, and lacking funds to repair the bridge, the company went out of business. The two states acquired the bridge and repaired it.

In August 2011 the bridge was briefly closed for repairs after a crack was found in a floor beam.[2][3]

The bridge has a sufficiency rating of 39.9%, which mainly reflects its obsolete nature. The Iowa Department of Transportation is planning for a replacement bridge to start construction in 2024.[4][5]

The bridge was featured in a scene from the 1999 film The Straight Story, when Alvin Straight is depicted crossing the Mississippi River near the end of his 240 mile journey.[6]

  • Images
  • Black Hawk Bridge, Lansing, Iowa: the steep ramp of the Iowa approach.
  • Black Hawk Bridge, Lansing, Iowa, from west to east.
  • The Black Hawk Bridge at dusk, looking northeast.
  • Aerial view looking north, January 14, 2001, with River at floodstage. (USGS, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center)
  • View from northwest, showing Wisconsin shore, with a barge crossing underneath (Library of Congress/HAER)
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See also

Notes
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-07-28.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. "Iowa 9 bridge closed over the Mississippi River at Lansing". news.iowadot.gov. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
  3. "Iowa DOT to reopen Iowa 9 bridge over the Mississippi River at Lansing today". news.iowadot.gov. Retrieved 24 August 2011.
  4. Cantine-Maxson, Susan. "Public learns more at August 8 meeting about Iowa DOT study for potential replacement of Black Hawk Bridge in Lansing". www.waukonstandard.com. Retrieved 2018-07-13.
  5. Iowa Department of Transportation (May 3, 2018). "Iowa 9 (Black Hawk) Bridge In Allamakee County to be Discussed May 15 in Lansing". www.news.iowadot.gov. Retrieved 2018-07-13.
  6. Lynch, James Q. (October 15, 1998). "Mower man film rolling". Cedar Rapids Gazette. Retrieved July 23, 2018.

References
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