1927,2014 Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge in Pennsylvania

(Bridge Hunter; Historic Bridges; B&T; 3D Satellite)

I discovered this bridge in a "Bridges & Tunnels with Sherman Cahal" post. Any cantilevered bridge that a state DOT restored is worth noting. In fact, HistoricBridges reports that Pennsylvania's original plans were to replace it. However, HistoricBridges explains that the state could not afford a replacement and did just a partial rehabilitation good for 25 years rather than a complete rehabilitation that would have been good for 75 years.

Street View, Sep 2021

Some of the detailed photos in BridgeHunter caught my eye since they showed pin connections. I was able to catch some pin connections in a street view. Note the lower-left and upper-right corners in this view. This bridge must have been a transition design between pin connections and gusset plates because descriptions of the $16.6m 2011-14 rehabilitation include "repairing all gusset plates."

Street View

This view was taken while the rehabilitation was in progress.

Street View, Oct 2013

1906-1987 Milwaukee/Chicago Southern Railway Jenkins Ford High Bridge over Vermilion River near Danville, IL

(Bridge Hunter; Satellite, a couple of miles east of Westville, IL over the Vermilion River)

BridgeHunter
A view of the trestle and the then current mode of transportation. The bridge that they will cross is barely visible on the other side of the trestle towers.

Better resolution:

Michael Rogner posted
Vermilion River bridge south of Danville at Jenkins Ford during the Walsh era. View is more or less southwest. Right side of trestle looks like it's hanging in mid air, but there is an embankment there, just kind of washed out in the photo. This area is covered with trees now.

eBook via BridgeHunter, 1908

While paging through the eBook to find a page number for the above photo (page 601), I found some more photos of this bridge.

Digitized by Google, p173

Digitized by Google, p475

Digitized by Google, p553

Digitized by Google, p601

An artist rather obviously added a work train to the above photo.

Postcard via BridgeHunter

The footing by the river is almost covered up by trees.

Satellite

Jim Bryant posted seven images with the comment:

Jenkins Ford Bridge, east of Westville, Illinois, was built in 1906 for the Chicago Southern Railway; removed in 1987. In its day it was considered the tallest bridge in Illinois. Built by Chicago Bridge & Iron Works of Chicago, Illinois (also known as Chicago Bridge & Iron Co).. Railroads lines that operated in its day were  the Chicago Southern Railway (CSRY)- Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad (MILW),  Chicago, Terre Haute & Southeastern Railway (CTH&S)

Design

Deck plate girder

Dimensions

Length of largest span: 200.0 ft.

Total length: 1,600.0 ft.

Tim Shanahan shared

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The removal of the bridge in early 1980's.

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Construction of both bridges in 1906.

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This picture was taken in1906. This was the south bridge which provided a right of way for civilians to get across the river. To the right and adjacent was the railroad bridge which is seen at the right of the picture.

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The aerial view was taken in 1940.

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The same overhead view from what it looks like presently, the blue line showing where the railrlroad line ran. Two concrete girders are barely visible just past Vermilion River.

James Langley posted two images with the comment: "Milwaukee Road trestle over the Vermilion River outside of Danville, IL. Photo was taken in the early 80’s and unfortunately the trestle has now been dismantled and only exists in photos."

Michael Roegner: At one time after it was abandoned the county considered making it a highway bridge to replace the Jenkins Ford highway bridge dismantled in 1964. Nothing came of the idea.

John Green: What was the nearest town other than Danville?

Dennis DeBruler: John Green It is east of Westville, https://maps.app.goo.gl/r76AtHS1qsnEPmt87.

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[He has North at the bottom.]

This map shows the road bridge as well.

1950/60 Danville SE Quad @ 24,000

ToDo:

Digitized by Google, p177

1889-15+1916,1951,2017 One-Lane Road+R.J. Corman/C&O Bridge over New River in Thurmond, WV

(Brudge Hunter; Historic Bridges; B&T, Blog; Satellite)

BridgeHunter specifies a build date of 1916, but B&T explains that date is when it was rebuilt after a derailment of two cars caused extensive damage. The bridge was completed in 1889 and the building railroad was connected to the C&O in 1893. In addition to the 1916 repairs, the bridge has been rehabilitated in 1951 and 2017. (Another source says a new bridge was completed in 1915 after a flood destroyed the old one in 1908. [Luna Reed])

There are more photos with this bridge in some notes on the coaling tower in Thurmond, WV. This town is so far off the beaten path that a street view car has evidently never been there.

Photo in comment by Tim in BridgeHunter

 

Jonathan Konopka posted
1982 - C&O 3863 in Thurmond, WV. Photograph by John F. Bjorklund, collection of the Center for Railroad Photography & Art.
William Alan Hall: Worked there many times over the years on CSX. See that little road on the right? I use to cross that with a big knuckle boom service truck. There was no weight limit on it back then. They assured me it would hold my truck. Use to close one eye when I crossed it....
Brandon Demers: “LEFT LANE LIMIT- 20000 TONS”.
Randall Hampton shared
That's the Thurmond station on the right.

 

Robert Slavy posted
04/21/18. Thurmond. Taken through my windshield when you had to drive on the railroad side of the bridge while they made repairs on the road part.

1 of 4 posted by Craig Hensley Photography
CSX G227 - Thurmond, WV
An eastbound CSX grain train passing through the town of Thurmond, WV in the heart of the New River Gorge. Chock full of history, this rather small town was incorporated in 1900 and was named for Captain W. D. Thurmond who settled here in 1844. C&O began operating through Thurmond in 1892 and since this was a coal mining town, coal was the primary export. A railroad station was constructed in 1888 and still stands today as a historic depot and an active stop on Amtrak's tri-weekly Cardinal service. The railroad took up the majority of real estate in town, as is still does today as part of the CSX New River Subdivision
Douglas Drexel Mitchell: Is the track over the bridge still used?
Peter Kazmierczak: Douglas Drexel Mitchell Primarily coal traffic is taken over that bridge, but some mixed freight for customers on that line as well. RJ Corman calls it the Loup Creek branch. Often times a CSX local will leave either a full empty coal train or other cars for them on a siding just north outside of town. RJC will get permission to either grab the mixed freight with their own power, or in the case of a coal train they use the CSX power for taking the train to and from the loading site. Loading takes place at Pax, using RJC power to move cuts of cars through. Once complete, they will tie back on with the CSX power and take it back for interchange. These ops are as-needed, but usually there's at least one coal train a week.
[Note the coaling tower in the background.]

 

Life west Virginia posted
A coal train slowly passing through the ghost town of Thurmond, WV, in the heart of the New River Gorge National Park.
[Note the extant coaling tower.]
Randall Hampton shared

This is the original bridge. Note that it had two tracks.

A 5:02 video of a history of the bridge, Screenshot @ 1:21

Zachary Syner posted
Thurmond Train Bridge and Station. This town used to service 15 passenger trains a day. It had attractions such as a movie theater, two hotels, two banks and more. Thurmond began to decline with the switch to diesel locomotives and the closing of local coal mines. The train station was restored by The National Park Service in efforts to save the history of the town, today it’s used as a visitor center museum.

The thing that caught my eye was the river level, not the train. Although coal trains are becomming more and more rare. I quit watching after a few coal cars went by.

safe_image for coal train crossing Thurmond bridge Thurmond West Virginia

Southern West Virginia Online posted
Fresh loads of West Virginia coal cross the New River into Thurmond bound for ports in Virginia…

J Reeves Photography posted
A coal train slowly passing through the ghost town of Thurmond, West Virginia, in the heart of the New River Gorge National Park.
Chris Robinson: The coal is from a mine in Pax WV. Alpha Resources.
Randall Hampton shared
Coming off the branch.
Eric Domboski: Nice photo! Since Thurmond still has some residents, it is NOT a ghost town.
J Reeves Photography: Eric Domboski might be a slight exaggeration, but it's certainly slight. 5 people don't make up much of a town.

I've passed up quite a few photos of this bridge, but this is a new angle. And a steam locomotive.

Luna Reed posted

Steam Engine rolling through Thurmond, West Virginia in the 1890s colorized. The famous Dun Glen Hotel in the background. The Thurmond Bridge in Thurmond, West Virginia, is a significant historical structure, reflecting the town's rich industrial past. The bridge spans the New River, connecting the town of Thurmond with the C&O Railroad

The bridge itself is a Pratt through-truss design, which was common for railroad bridges of that era. Its construction in 1889 is a testament to the engineering capabilities of the time and the importance of the railroad industry in the economic development of West Virginia. Sadly this original bridge was destroyed in the flood of 1908, it took awhile but the new one was completed in 1915.

Today, the bridge is part of the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, and while the town of Thurmond is no longer the bustling hub it once was, the bridge remains an iconic symbol of the town's historical significance. The Thurmond Depot, near the bridge, now serves as a visitor center for the National Park Service, offering insights into the town's history and the role of the railroad in the region.

Abandoned and Lost Truss Road Bridges and Camp Ellis Dam over Spoon River near Bernadotte, IL

Old Babylon Road: (Satellite)

Aban Seville Road: (Satellite) This crossing has been replaced by IL-95. It is next to the KJRY/TP&W bridge.

Destroyed Tartars: (Satellite) Destroyed by 2013 flood. [Bridge Hunter]

Aban Old Bridge Road: (Satellite) There is a new bridge just a few hundred feet downstream.

Dam: (Satellite)

Seville Road:

Hans Goeckner, Nov 2021

Tartars Ferry:

Mike Duvall posted

Tarter's Ferry Rd bridge

Tarter's Ferry Rd bridge [Google Maps spells it "ar" instead of "er."]

2009 Spoon River Fulton Co.

Mike Duvall posted

2009 Forgotten Rd bridge

Spoon River near Emiquon in Fulton Co.

2009 photo (township covered with dirt to prevent travel)

Dennis DeBruler commented on Mike's post
It is good that you got photos of these bridges. This truss is also gone. This aerial is an Apr 2014 image from Google Earth. The next image, Jun 2016, doesn't have the bridge. https://maps.app.goo.gl/iF6jtf5odymrGamT8

The replacement road and bridge is built above the flood stage.

Google Earth, Aug 2010

Old Bridge Road:

Fred Monger shared
the bridge at Bernadotte Illinois, before part of it fell into the Spoon River...

Tomas Powell commented on Fred's post
The part of the bridge that was removed

Lisa Ruble posted

Old Bridge at Bernadotte. This 1910 bridge replaced the 1840s covered bridge that stood there. See two pictures of the covered bridge in the comments. 

Spoon River 

Fulton County 

I took this picture on one of my Illinois road trips - February 2026

Facebook Reel

Same Reel
[See more about the dam below.]]

Lisa Ruble commented on her post

FULTON COUNTY

This covered bridge spanned Spoon River and was built entirely without the use of steel or iron. The stone for the abutments was quarried from the vicinity; the selected timber that went to the making of the superstructure was brought from the woods near by having been hewed into shape where it fell; wooden pins bound together the remarkable trusses. The old, covered bridge at Bernadotte was replaced by a modern structure in 1910.

Lisa Ruble commented on her post

Lisa Ruble commented on her post
February 2026

Lisa Ruble commented on her post
Fred Monger's 2021 photo of the bridge.

Lisa Ruble commented on her post

Lisa Ruble commented on her post

Lisa Ruble commented on her post
I think this is the same span nearby that fell into the water. February 2026.

James Barrow: Lisa Ruble it is.

Lisa Ruble commented on her post

Lisa Ruble posted

February 2026 Road Trip 

Bernadotte 

Fulton County

Justin Fogerty posted a 2:20 drone video and six photos. The drone video includes the Camp Ellis Spoon River Dam that is just upstream from this bridge. It also flies over the fallen segment that is now on land.

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Marcy Easley posted
I could only use 2 pictures 😗. This shows the bridge before the end of it was broke off.      I'll never regret taking so many pictures.  📸
Marcy Easley shared

Camp Ellis Dam

Cary Miller, Dec 2024

Crystal Hayes commented on Lisa Ruble's post

In the left corner, a couple of fish jump out of the water and then later another one jumps out.

Facebook Reel

If the river was over 7' (2m) higher than what we see here, could you even tell were the dam was?

Facebook Reel

There is still plenty of clearance under the bridge when the river is at dam height.

Same Reel

No, on Aug 18, you could not see the dam. That is one reason why Marcy focuses on the bridge in this reel. Another is that if there were debris on the river, the bridge would be in trouble.

Facebook Reel

I presume this is where the dam is located. Near the end of the reel they pan to the right so that we can see the water close to the bridge.

Facebook Reel

When I looked at Google Maps on Aug 24, 2026, I noticed the bridge is closed.

Satellite

Justin Fogerty posted five photos.

Joe Gray:  BERNADOTTE

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This river has some good examples of meanders.

Almost cutoff

Cutoff

Part of an oxbow lake that is still left.

Satellite