1932,1992 US-50 Lincoln Memorial Bridge over Wabash River at Vincennes, IN

(Archived Bridge Hunter; Bridge Hunter; Historic Bridges; Satellite)

HistoricBridges
This 1,020' (311m) long bridge has a main span of 180' (55m).
This is the site "where Abraham Lincoln crossed on a ferry to enter Illinois for the first time in his life."

This bridge is considered part of the George Rogers Clark Memorial Park.

Street View, Sep 2023

This shows how the bridge is close to the memorial.

Scanned by Robert Stephenson via BridgeHunter

Postcard via BridgeHunter

Postcard with a 1940 view via BridgeHunter

Sources make a big deal about the Art Déco pylons on the Indiana side. They are still standing in a Oct 2022 view, but they are gone in a Sep 2023 view. Also the concrete railings on this side of the pylons have been replaced by chain-link fences.

Street View, Nov 2018

After seeing the 1940 stairway access to the memorial parkin the above postcard, I checked some more views.

Street View, Oct 2022

I hope this means that they are doing rehabilitation work and that the pylons will be restored.

Street View, Sep 2023

The bridge is long. There are not too many photos that capture most of the spans. We can see the CSX/B&O Bridge under one of the spans.

2010 photo by Robert Stephenson via BridgeHunter

Andrew was also able to catch most of the bridge.

2012 photo by Andrew Raker via BridgeHunter

This was posted on Sep 22, 2025, so it looks like the pylons have been restored.

Shiraboni Khatun posted

Few of the many drivers crossing the Memorial Bridge know the importance of the crossing for Vincennes, IN and history itself. Made of reinforced concrete and spanning the Wabash River between Illinois and Indiana, the Memorial Bridge (often called the Lincoln Memorial Bridge) is the site of an old Buffalo Trace that crisscrossed the old Northwest Territory and one of the lower spots of the river.  This important crossing zone saw people from many nations traveling through the area.  One such user of the ferry setup where the bridge now stands was Abraham Lincoln and family who crossed in 1830 on their way to Illinois. 

The Bridge opened to traffic on July 14, 1932. Today it hosts its own travelers, from local farmers to park visitors, keeping alive the memory of the old Buffalo Trace that once made the area a great place for a settlement and a fort.