Historic Smith Road Bridge

The 1910 bridge is a single-span, steel, riveted and bolted, Pratt through truss. Weighing 99,000 pounds with a length of 120 feet, the Smith Road bridge incorporated both new and old 20th century bridge building technologies by using rivets and bolts to tie the structure together. The development of pneumatic riveting equipment permitted the use of rivets in addition to bolts during the final on-

site assembly. Riveted bridges would become the standard for all bridges in Wisconsin in 1911. For over 100 years, the Smith Road bridge across Turtle Creek sat near another historic structure, the 1869, five-arch, stone railroad bridge. In 2019, the process for the Smith Road bridge replacement began. A new bridge needed to be constructed to provide emergency vehicle access before a new bridge in Shopiere could start construction. We decided we wanted to try to move it and were awarded the chance after an application and review process by the DOT. The process required many hours of planning and coordination with McCutchin Crane and Rigging as well as Dutton Welding and Millwright Services who were both essential to a successful relocation. The move required four separate steps over a two month period, but in the end, it was a great success and the bridge has a new home over a small creek on our farm. It is visible from County J, looking to the south. We are happy that it could be saved from demolition and stay within a mile of its original location.