1887 Dillon Military and 1879 Hale Bridges over, and 1912 Dam on, Wapsipinicon River in Anamosa, IA

Military: (Archived Bridge Hunter; Bridge Hunter; no Historic Bridges; HAER; Satellite)

Hale: (Archived Bridge Hunter; Bridge Hunter; Historic Bridges; HAER: Satellite)

Dam: (Satellite)

Today, I researched two bridges built by the King Iron Bridge and Manufacturing Company. The Hale bridge below is one of them, and the Bridge Street Movable Bridge in Piermont, NY is the other.

The dam is behind the Military Bridge.

Street View, Aug 2021

Iowa Road Trip posted

Hale Bridge in Anamosa, Iowa

Hale Bridge is a historic bowstring through-arch truss bridge. The bridge was completed in 1879, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.  In 2006, the bridge was flown by a chinook helicopter from its original location to Anamosa, Iowa.  Today it serves as a pedestrian-only bridge located south of the Wapsipinicon State Park on Shaw Road in Anamosa, Iowa.   Brian Abeling / Iowa Road Trip

The height of the dam is 19' (5.8m). [LansingStateJournal]

May 2024:

Carol Thumma posted four photos with the comment: "It's been a long time since I've seen the Wapsipinicon flowing like this over the Dam in Anamosa.  Thanking God for the needed rain!"

Steve Chapman: Last year there was no water coming over it . People were walking on it and fishing off of it .

Thank God for the rain.

[The dam is owned by an electric company, but I could not find its megawatt capacity.]

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4, cropped

krcproject, photo by Mike Roeder
Built 1912. This source specifies a height of 8' (2.4m). Two swimmers drowned in 1974.

HAER IOWA,53-ANAM,1--15 (CT)
GENERAL VIEW OF EAST SIDE LOOKING WEST, ROLLER DAM AND RURAL ELECTRICAL FACILITY IN FOREGROUND AND CURRENT HIGHWAY 151 BRIDGE IN BACKGROUND. - Wapsipinicon River Bridge, Spanning Wapsipinicon River at former State Highway 151, Anamosa, Jones County, IA

"Significance: Unaltered example of a metal Pratt through truss, unusual lattice vertical posts which may be unique to the Milwaukee Bridge and Iron Co." [HAER_data_military]

HAER IOWA,53-ANAM,1--7
OBLIQUE VIEW OF THE WEB SYSTEM LOOKING NORTHEAST, SHOWING ROLLER DAM AND ELECTRIC COMPANY IN BACKGROUND. - Wapsipinicon River Bridge, Spanning Wapsipinicon River at former State Highway 151, Anamosa, Jones County, IA

Street View, Jun 2022

 HAER IOWA,53-OXFJ.V,1--14 (CT)
ELEVATION FROM WEST - Hale Bridge, Spanning Wapsipinicon River, Oxford Junction, Jones County, IA

"Significance: The three-span Hale Bridge is a striking, and extremely rare, example of what was once a common bridge form: the bowstring arch-truss. In the 1860s and 1870s bowstring arch-trusses were used extensively because of their great structural efficiency and relatively low construction costs. The Hale Bridge is an excellent example of the work of the King Iron Bridge and Manufacturing Company, a major bridge fabricator who erected great number of this type of bridge throughout the nation, including many in Iowa." [HAER_data_hale]

HAER IOWA,53-OXFJ.V,1--8
8. BARREL VIEW FROM SOUTH - Hale Bridge, Spanning Wapsipinicon River, Oxford Junction, Jones County, IA

"Approximately 20-25 personnel and two CH-47 “Chinook” helicopters airlifted three separate, rehabilitated trusses of the historic Hale Bridge from the Olin/Hale area to their new home at the Wapsipinicon State Park in Anamosa.....Bowstring types like this one with their distinctive arched or curved trusses largely replaced wooden bridges over major streams and crossings in Iowa in the 1870s and 1880s. While there were literally hundreds of bowstring arch bridges in Iowa by the end of the 19th century, only 21 now remain scattered across the state in Allamakee, Bremer, Crawford, Dubuque, Johnson, Jones, Montgomery, Poweshiek, and Winnishiek counties." [IowaHistory]

It was not a tandem lift for the smaller spans. I wonder if it was a tandem lift for the longer span. They would have to fly side-by-side, one at each end of the span. A tandem lift would be a very challenging training session for the Iowa Army National Guard.

kcci8