1923-89 Aban US-41 Bridge over White River at Hazleton, IN

(Bridge Hunter; Historic Bridges; Satellite)

Frank M. Hohenberger Photo via Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN via BridgeHunter,
License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 

Bridges Now and Then posted
Building a bridge over the White River at Hazelton, Indiana, c. 1921. (Granville C. Thompson/Purdue University)

Street View from the replacement US-41 bridge

"Pictured in the Engineering News in 1924 and presented as 'one of the longest highway structures in the Middle West,' this was one of Indiana's most advertised bridges. It is tied for the longest remaining Parker structure in the state and is among the longest overall." [DHPA Historic Bridge Survey via HistoricBridges]

The bridge long because it has a long viaduct over a flood plain.

Robert Stephenson 2007 Photo via BridgeHunter

Of note, that approach was constructed with concrete girders. That was probably bleeding edge back in 1923. The embankment we see on the left extends for almost a mile to help keep the road above floods.

Photo via Indiana State Department of Natural Resource, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology via BridgeHunter

One end of one of the concrete spans has fallen. I presume that it was taken out by a flood.

James Simmons 2010 Photo via BridgeHunter

If you zoom out on a satellite image, you can see the erosion of the land caused by the flood waters being pushed by the embankment under the concrete approach.

Satellite

As we have come to expect, the replacement bridge is a UCEB (Ugly Concrete Eyesore Bridge).

Street View

The viaduct across land on the north side of the White River reminds me of the northern approach of the IN-63 bridge over the Wabash River that I used to drive over when visiting my parents. I never did see water on the field.

Satellite

A 1:37 YouTube video