Illinois River Peoria Lock and Dam

(John A. Weeks III, Satellite)

David Jordan shared
Peoria Lock and Dam will close for 60 days in 2020 (the linked article has more photos)
This could create some interesting alternatives for rail-barge traffic in the area. If nothing else, ADM’s Cedar Rapids plants will temporarily cease routing distillers mash and/or gluten feed pellets to ADM Grain Co. docks on Wesley Road via the Iowa Interstate. I suppose they could send this traffic to alternate area locations such as CHS at Pekin or to the American Milling Co.-operated dock at Crystal Lake.

Tim Freitag posted
It's a core rig named Hercules.
[According to the comments Hercules is a  Manatowoc 4600 on a 60' ringer mounted on a barge. There is controversy as to weather or not the counterweights slide. Normally they stay at the end on a ringer. But since this is mounted on a barge, sliding coutnerweights would make sense.]
Dennis DeBruler Deron Manseau I looked through my notes and found an image with no load on the hook. The counterweights are still fully extended over the ring. http://www.mvr.usace.army.mil/Media/Images.aspx...

Mike Weaver commented on Tim Freitag's posting

Mike Weaver commented on Tim Freitag's posting
Ben Stalvey Sure is neat how it folds down
Jon Hart Has to fit under those bridges!

PeoriaMagazines

Jack Tanner Towing posted eight photos with the comment: "The M/V Danny H. Took a little trip North over the weekend for some maintenance. Here she is Southbound making lock!" (Jack Tanner Towing is based in Havana, IL.)

[He caught the river with the wicket gates up. Photo 6 is a particularly good view of the gates.]

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It was hard finding the visitor center for this dam. I wanted to see this dam because it is one of the few wicket gate dams left in America. It had a sign on the fence that was rather confusing about what was allowed inside. But the gate was partially open, so we parked at the visitor center. Cameras were a definite no-no. While I was walking around, a person soon walked over from the office building. He informed me that people are not allowed inside the fence. The gate was partially open because it was broke. So we left. Both sides of the downstream river are lined with forests so it is impossible to get views from the river side. John Weeks did what I thought about doing --- getting pictures as I go across the I-474 bridge.

Satellite

I made a copy of the Google image because it caught the Illinois River with a high flow so that the wicket gates are down. This allows the tows to use the river channel instead of the lock making passage by the dam much faster. Since the lock chamber is not used during high water, that is where they are parking the tender that raises and lowers the gates. The Tainter gate would be wide open.

Birds-Eye View

I made a copy of the birds-eye view because it not only caught the river at low flow with the wickets up, it caught a downstream tow going through the lock. The 15-barge tow indicates the lock is just 600' because the tow had to lock through as two parts. The Tainter gate was installed so that fine flow adjustments can be made to maintain a consistent pool height.



Of interest is that there were at least two more tows waiting upstream to use the lock. Note the "helper" towboat against the second barge on the starboard side to help guide the tow.

Birds-Eye View

About a half mile upstream is another tow waiting its turn. Note the coal train on the TZPR/PPU tracks.

Birds-Eye View

Given this traffic jam of downstream tows, I looked below the dam to see if there were any upstream tows waiting for the lock. I did not find any. Two 15-barge tows waiting to go through the lock when the lock can only handle half a tow illustrates how important it is to lower the wicket gates during high water so that the lock is not needed.

USACE posted three photos with the comment:

Maintenance and inspections continue at Peoria Lock and Dam near Creve Coeur, Illinois, as part of the 2020 Illinois Waterway Consolidated Lock Closures. Built around the 1930's, these lock systems have withstood the test of time and are getting much needed repairs performed during these closures. #ILWW2020Closures

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USACE photo
[It reopened on Sep 30, 2020.]

While looking for a grain elevator, I noticed that the satellite image shows why they sometimes want to put the wickets down and allow the boats to bypass the lock.

Satellite accessed July 5, 2021

Jeffery Engle, Nov 2017

USACE video of the 2020 repairs  It says the Illinois Waterway has navigation all year long.

Four photos from the first towboat through this lock when it opened back up in 2020

safe_image for 'An incredible system': 1930s-era Peoria Lock and Dams included in $829 million for waterway improvements
Most of this money is going for an expansion of the 600' lock to a 1200' lock at the Mississippi L&D #25. It will also pay for a fish passage north of Quincy.
"Currently, the process of locking through a 600-foot chamber can take up to four to six hours, Wilkins said. 'One lockage in a nice 1200-foot chamber, you do the same operation within 30, 40, 50 minutes,' he said."
Gerald Jerry Riesenberg: It does not take 4-6 hours to lock through a 600 ft chamber 2 times !!! I rode those boats for 12 years on the upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers and made hundreds of double lockings. It can be done in roughly 2 hours, maybe 2 1/2.
[I've watched double-lockings, and it can be done significantly faster than 4-6 hours.]
Del Wilkins is president of the Illinois Marine Waterway Association. Is he deliberately exaggerating the lock time or is a person in that position really that ignorant? Either way, his error is disconcerting because exaggerating by that much is effectively a lie.

Steep CGW Industrial Spur in St. Charles, IL

I don't normally do postings about industrial spurs, but this one is interesting.

Dave Kuntz posted the comment: "I'm reading about a steep siding that ended up on St. Charles' Main Street and had several runaways in "The Chicago Great Western Railway" pictorial book."

Jerry Hund commented on Dave's posting
Here's the most famous runaway in St. Charles.
Dave Kuntz Trolley Tracks on street?
Jerry Hund Dave Kuntz yes, they belonged to the Aurora, Elgin and Fox River RR until 1935. Also, the CA&E Geneva Branch ended a short distance past this area.
Jerry Hund Notice the empty lot on the corner. The Arcada Theatre would be built here. Air Supply is playing there tonight.

I suspect the curve in the building marks the location of the industrial siding that served a, possibly water powered, industry in the 1800s. The tracks were probably gone before the building was built, but the property lines for the lot would have been defined by the railroad right-of-way.

Satellite plus Paint

Street View

This photo is old enough to provide a view of the industrial spur.

Andy Zukowski posted
A Glimpse of St. Charles, Illinois from the Great Western Railroad Bridge. 1920

Jake Zimmerman: This is one of very few, if any other actually, photos of seen where the steep lead to downtown is visible.

This 1939 view confirms that the curve in the building marked above is where the siding ran.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Jake's comment
Jake Zimmerman: http://clearinghouse.isgs.illinois.edu/.../0bwu05053.jpg

MWRD: South Side Interceptor Pumping Plants

(Update: this photo and other interceptor sewer construction photos have been moved to Interceptor Sewer Construction.)

MWRD posted
Historical Photo of the Week: The intersection of 92nd Street and Mackinaw Avenue in Chicago on October 3, 1923, showing a westward view of work on the Calumet intercepting sewer system.

It was easy finding information about the pumping station that pumped sewage from the lake side intercepting sewers into the North Branch of the Chicago River. But it has been harder finding information on the pumping stations for interceptor sewers on the south side. Fortunately, I recorded the following notes when I researched the north pump station:

(For future reference, I have come across "Racine Pumping Plant" and "pumping station at 68th near South Shore Drive." While Googling for them, I found a map of Chicago's supply water pumping stations. This looks like the Racine Pumping Plant. I didn't find anything around 68th and South Shore.)

Google found a map of MWRD's CSO's outflows, but the contents is blank even though the sidebar looks valid. "CSO Locations" in the sidebar is also blank. Backing off to their CSO level gives me a useful page. Clicking the "Stickney Area" link gives me list that includes the Racine Ave Pump Station as number 142. This list includes other pumping stations such as Nashville Avenue (#189). But I could not find anything that looks like a pump station there. Also on the list was Southwest Side 13A (#146) and Westchester (#150).

A reference that records "diversions" from the pump stations ("Summary of Activity at Major Pump Stations" link on the CSO Overview page) lists the following pump stations: North Branch, Racine Avenue, Westchester, 95th Street, 122nd Street and 125th Street. (Again, it is a real shame their map page is not working.)

EJ&E switched from a belt railroad to a private US Steel railroad in the mid 1970s

I found the comments to be more interesting than the photo.

Kevin Piper posted
906 leads a typical 1960's EJ&E freight past the CB&Q interchange in late afternoon at Eola on 8-25-68. When the Centercabs first got solid orange paint, they also had black frames pilots, and walkways. To simplify repainting, the black was later dropped in favor of more orange in those areas. By the mid-1970's, EJ&E freight trains took on a much different look after the railroad started to discourage bridge traffic. The bean counters determined that bridge traffic between different connecting railroads, using the J as a "middle man", was unprofitable. As a result, the "Chicago Outer Belt" slogan was dropped. LOUIS CERNY PHOTO/KEVIN PIPER COLLECTION
Dennis DeBruler I remember that EJ&E quit carrying bridge traffic and was to do what it was owned for --- connect US Steel plants. Thanks for reminding me that the change was done in the mid 1970s.
Kevin PiperGroup Admin USS wanted it to be a conveyor belt for them.

2026 BNSF/NP Bridge over Missouri River at Mandan-Bismarck, ND

(Bridge Hunter, no Historic Bridges, John A. Weeks III, 3D Satellite)

The bridge has three note files: 1882, 1905 and 2026.

Jul 2, 2024:

BNSF Railway posted

Did you know BNSF’s Bismarck-Mandan rail bridge is older than the state of North Dakota itself? 

This vital link is getting a modern makeover! 

BNSF is constructing a new bridge to keep freight moving efficiently and safely across the Missouri River.

Read more: https://bit.ly/3zA9Piu

2020:

1:13 BNSF video

I captured some of the articles about the controversy of building the replacement on a new alignment so that they old one could be preserved.

safe_image for BNSF Railway asks Coast Guard to start process to remove historic rail bridge

safe_image for Rail bridge dispute continues
"The bridge was completed in 1883 making it almost 140 years old."

Dennis DeBruler: 1883 would be the date for the predecessor bridge:

https://bridgehunter.com/nd/burleigh/bismarck-railroad/

This bridge has a date of 1905:

https://bridgehunter.com/nd/burleigh/bh44455/

However, the piers are from the older bridge.

safe_image for Preservation group working to save historic railroad bridge over Missouri River
The 1883 railroad bridge was “crossed in the early years by notables including former presidents Ulysses S. Grant and Theodore Roosevelt, as well as Sitting Bull.”

inforum
A rendering of proposed changes to the 1883 [actually, 1905] Bismarck-Mandan Rail Bridge, including a walking and biking path. The group Friends of the Rail Bridge maintains the historic bridge and a new BNSF bridge can coexist.
Contributed / Friends of the Rail Bridge

safe_image for BNSF issued final two permits needed for bridge tear down and construction
"Tree removal has already begun around the existing bridge. The project is estimated to take four years to complete. The new bridge is estimated to cost $100 million, which is $40 million more than when BNSF started the federal permitting process five years ago."

Maybe BNSF would be better off moving the new bridge to a new alignment.

Based on a paper written by Ed Murphy of the ND Geological Survey, the railroad (first Northern Pacific, and now BNSF), have had endless problems with the eastern pier of the High Bridge. Just after completion, the east pier began shifting towards the Missouri River at a rate of 3 to 3-1/2 inches per year. A number of repairs were attempted, but none seemed to work. In 1898, the pier was dug out and moved back onto a larger foundation. By 1902, the pier was already 4 inches off center. After further investigation, it was suspected that the city water reservoir located on a hill above the railroad track was leaking large amounts of water, causing the entire hillside to slide towards the river. The NP built a tunnel under the area to try to drain the water, but the pier continued to move. More projects were completed in 1918, 1923, and 1940 to try to slow down the landslide. In 1951, the NP undertook a major project to cut down the hill and regrade the area. This helped the situation by slowing down the movement to 1/3 of an inch per year, but did not stop the movement. [John Weeks III]

According to John Weeks, BNSF runs most of their trains over the former GN route. This NP route became busy hauling Powder River Basin Coal. But that traffic is drying up as coal-fired power plants are being converted to gas or shuttered. So the cost of stopping traffic on this route while they replace the bridge might not be high enough to help save the old bridge with a new alignment.

Construction has started. Completion is expected in 2Q2026.

BNSF
The new spans will be 200' (61m) instead of 400' (122m).

Sep 17, 2024: Given the access road and cranes on the right side, it appears the bridge replacement is well underway. 

Steve Mitten posted

BNSF
"Expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2026, the new bridge will replace the original bridge – but not without preserving pieces of this North Dakotan landmark.  Portions of the original bridge were made available for the community to repurpose."

BNSF Railway posted four photos with the comment:

Construction on our new rail bridge over the Missouri River at Bismarck, North Dakota, is well underway, bringing us closer to final completion in 2026.

This bridge will replace and is next to the existing bridge. When completed it will support heavier loads and enable more types of service for our customers.

The photos show recent work on Pier 9.

For more information about this project, check out this site at https://bit.ly/3OqqM37.

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Robert Street Bridge over Mississippi in St. Paul, MN

(Bridge Hunter, Historic Bridges, John Weeks, 3D Satellite)

The content concerning the UP/C&NW/CGW lift bridge has been moved to here. Many of those photos include this bridge in the background.

John A. Weeks III, downstream (eastern) elevation from the south bank riverwalk

John A. Weeks III
The photo above shows a good view of the main span rainbow arch. Notice that there is steel work under the bridge deck to help support the roadway. Also notice the Great Western railroad lift bridge behind the Robert Street Bridge. The railroad bridge was built many years before the Robert Street Bridge.

 Both road and railroad truss bridges were built in 1885.

Journal of the Western Society of Engineers, Volume 8, p 438
The draw is operated by steam.

Dan Ashbach posted three photos with the comment:

Robert Street Bridge.

The first bridge here opened in 1886 and served until the early 1920s, when a higher bridge was required to accommodate a raised railroad platform at St. Paul Union Depot. Designed by Toltz, King and Day of St. Paul, the bridge is a type known as a “rainbow arch,” so named because the arches of the main span raise above the roadway like, well, rainbows. This form was dictated by the demands of the site: the bridge’s roadway needed to reach Kellogg Mall at grade but also had to clear the elevated tracks of the adjacent Great Western Lift Bridge (1913) and be high enough to permit the passage of riverboats. The bridge, which has art deco touches, was rebuilt in 1989 by the same firm, now known as TKDA, that had designed it 65 years earlier.

Tom Lyman shared

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Historic Bridges
ca. 1895 Photo of Previous Bridge
Source: Minneapolis Photo Collection of Hennepin County Library

Street View

The railroad bridge was replaced in 1913 and the road bridge was replaced in 1926. The road bridge was rehabilitated in 1989 and added to the National Register of Historic Places. The concrete pony arch [BridgeHunter] or rainbow arch [HistoricBridges, JohnWeeks] span (navigation channel span) is 264'. The two pony arches are not reinforced with rebar. Instead, a steel arch was built, which was then encased by concrete. [HistoricBridges, JohnWeeks, BridgeHunter]

One feature of the bridge is that it appears to fit so well to its surroundings. Perhaps the reason for that is that the bridge was so difficult to fit around all the obstacles at that location. This includes having to be high enough for river boat traffic, low enough to meet the low grade south of the river without having too steep of grade (as required by street cars), it has to be high enough for trains to pass under, yet it had to match the height of Kellogg Blvd. The result is that the bridge design was dictated by each of these constraints. [JohnWeeks]

Kevin Piper posted
Two SOO GP30's cross the Mississippi River at St. Paul, MN, on 8-16-74. PHOTOGRAPHER UNKNOWN

John Harker posted
Moments after departing from St Paul Union Depot at 6:55 pm in August 1970, Milw train #5 the Morning Hiawatha was captured in this scene passing under the Robert Street Bridge. It was enroute to the Minneapolis station for a scheduled arrival at 7:20 pm. William J Brennan took this original Kodachrome slide which I scanned and edited for this image. Also, an image of his slide was published in the Morning Sun book, Milwaukee Road Through Passenger Service, Volume 2 by Greg Stout and John Schultz. John Harker collection

The river has been really low in Summer 2021. Plus this provides a view of the upstream side of the bridge.

Mary C Kennedy posted, cropped
Messy shoreline on the low Miss in downtown St Paul.

uslakes