Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge

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Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge
IndianLakeBridgeOrion-1.jpg
Location Indian Lake Rd., E of M24, Orion, Michigan
Coordinates 42°47′51″N83°14′47″W / 42.79750°N 83.24639°W / 42.79750; -83.24639 (Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge) Coordinates: 42°47′51″N83°14′47″W / 42.79750°N 83.24639°W / 42.79750; -83.24639 (Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge)
Area less than one acre
Built 1891 (1891)
Architectural style Stone arch railroad bridge
NRHP reference # 05000712 [1]
Added to NRHP July 22, 2005

The Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge is a former railroad bridge which now carries a hiking/biking path over Indian Lake Road, just east of M-24 near Orion, Michigan. It is one of only a small number of stone arch railroad bridges known to exist in Michigan. [2] The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. [1]

M-24 (Michigan highway) highway in Michigan, United States

M-24 is a north–south state trunkline highway in the U.S. state of Michigan that extends 75.691 miles (121.813 km) through Southeast Michigan and The Thumb, from northeast Auburn Hills to Unionville. It starts at an interchange with Interstate 75 (I-75) and ends where it merges with M-25. While the M-24 designation is similar to that of US Highway 24 (US 24) which has a northern terminus located only a few miles from the southern terminus of M-24, M-24 was never part of US 24.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

History

The Detroit & Bay City Railroad was chartered in 1871. They constructed a line starting in Detroit which reached the Lake Orion area in 1872 and was completed through to Bay City the next year. The Michigan Central Railroad leased the line starting in 1881, and it operated afterwards as part of the Michigan Central system. [2]

Detroit Largest city in Michigan

Detroit is the largest and most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan, the largest United States city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of Wayne County. The municipality of Detroit had a 2017 estimated population of 673,104, making it the 23rd-most populous city in the United States. The metropolitan area, known as Metro Detroit, is home to 4.3 million people, making it the second-largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area. Regarded as a major cultural center, Detroit is known for its contributions to music and as a repository for art, architecture and design.

Bay City, Michigan City in Michigan, United States

Bay City is a city in Bay County, Michigan, located near the base of the Saginaw Bay on Lake Huron. As of the 2010 census, the city's population was 34,932, and is the principal city of the Bay City Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Saginaw-Midland-Bay City Combined Statistical Area. The city, along with nearby Midland and Saginaw, form the Greater Tri-Cities region of Central Michigan, which has more recently been called the Great Lakes Bay Region.

Michigan Central Railroad transport company

The Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada. After about 1867 the railroad was controlled by the New York Central Railroad, which later became part of Penn Central and then Conrail. After the 1998 Conrail breakup Norfolk Southern Railway now owns much of the former Michigan Central trackage.

There is no record of the construction of this bridge, but a date stone in the bridge wing wall is carved with "1891," and the bridge construction is similar to three or four other known Michigan Central stone arch structures constructed at about that time. [2]

Description

The Indian Lake Road Stone Arch Bridge is a single-span arch constructed of yellowish-brown rock-faced sandstone. The arch spans 19 feet between abutments and is 12 feet high. The entire bridge is nearly 16 feet high and is 21 feet wide from face to face. The bridge formerly carried a railroad line. [2]

The arch of the bridge begins atop the fifth course of masonry above ground level. Two pairs of side-by-side voussoirs support a single regular horizontal block of stone, which flank the central four voussoirs and the keystone. Atop the arch is a projecting one course high stone cap. The bridge wingwalls are built of regular blocks of stone, with the courses aligned to the abutments. A stone at the far east end of the southeastern wingwall displays "1891" carved in its upper surface. [2]

Keystone (architecture)

A keystone is the wedge-shaped stone piece at the apex of a masonry arch, or the generally round one at the apex of a vault. In both cases it is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allowing the arch or vault to bear weight. In both arches and vaults, keystones are often enlarged beyond the structural requirements, and often decorated in some way. Keystones are often placed in the centre of the flat top of openings such as doors and windows, essentially for decorative effect.

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