Trowbridge Road-Grand Trunk Western Railroad Bridge | |
Location | Trowbridge Rd. over GTW Railroad, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan |
---|---|
Coordinates | 42°34′50″N83°13′51″W / 42.58056°N 83.23083°W Coordinates: 42°34′50″N83°13′51″W / 42.58056°N 83.23083°W |
Area | less than one acre |
Built | 1931 |
Built by | A. Guthrie and Company |
Architect | Grand Trunk Railroad |
Architectural style | Concrete continuous T-beam |
MPS | Highway Bridges of Michigan MPS |
NRHP reference # | 00000010 [1] |
Added to NRHP | January 28, 2000 |
The Trowbridge Road-Grand Trunk Western Railroad Bridge is a bridge carrying Trowbridge Road over the Grand Trunk Western Railroad in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. [1]
The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company is an American subsidiary of the Canadian National Railway operating in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio. Since a corporate restructuring in 1971 the railroad has been under CN's subsidiary holding company the Grand Trunk Corporation. Grand Trunk Western's routes are part of CN's Michigan Division. Its primary mainline between Chicago, Illinois, and Port Huron, Michigan, serves as a connection between railroad interchanges in Chicago and rail lines in eastern Canada and the Northeastern United States. The railroad's extensive trackage in Detroit and across southern Michigan has made it an essential link for the automotive industry as a hauler of parts and automobiles from manufacturing plants.
Bloomfield Hills is a city located in Metro Detroit's northern suburbs in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan, 20.2 miles (32.5 km) northwest of downtown Detroit. The city is almost completely surrounded by Bloomfield Township. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 3,869.
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 in preserving the property.
In the late 1910s, there was significant pressure to upgrade Woodward Avenue, a major artery carrying traffic from Detroit to Pontiac. In response, the road commissions of Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties and the affected municipalities created a regional master plan for improvements. In 1923, the state agreed to share in some of the cost of improving the infrastructure. The state led the effort to secure a right-of-way along the Woodward corridor; one of the major impediments was the existence of the Grand Trunk Western Railroad track paralleling Woodward. [2]
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.
Pontiac is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, located in Metro Detroit. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 59,515. It is the county seat of Oakland County and about 12 miles (19 km) north and slightly west of the Detroit city limits.
Wayne County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of 2018, the United States Census estimated its population as 1,753,893 making it the 19th-most populous county in the United States. The county seat is Detroit, the largest and most populous city in Michigan and 23rd-most populous city in the United States. The county was founded in 1796 and organized in 1815.
After protracted legal wrangling, the railroad and the state came to an agreement, and the tracks were shifted to a new location. As part of the new construction, a series of bridges were designed by the railroad to carry street over the new tracks. Sixteen bridges were built by A. Guthrie & Company of St. Paul, Minnesota in 1930, but the Trowbridge Road bridge was not completed until 1931. [2]
The bridge was closed in 2017, and as of 2019 was slated for demolition. [3]
The Trowbridge Road bridge is a seven span, concrete T-beam structure. It is 231 feet long, with a 44-foot-wide deck carrying a 30-foot-wide roadway. It has false concrete arches with recessed panels in the spandrels. The railings are solid concrete parapets with paneled concrete posts and three recessed rectangular panels between each. The date "1930" is chiseled into the parapets at each end. The ends curve out before terminating in concrete posts, and chain-link fencing lines the inside of the railing. [2]
A T-beam, used in construction, is a load-bearing structure of reinforced concrete, wood or metal, with a t-shaped cross section. The top of the t-shaped cross section serves as a flange or compression member in resisting compressive stresses. The web of the beam below the compression flange serves to resist shear stress and to provide greater separation for the coupled forces of bending.
The American Legion Memorial Bridge is a reinforced concrete arch bridge carrying South Cass Street over the Boardman River in Traverse City, Michigan. It was completed in 1930 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.
The Chestnut Street Bridge is located where Chestnut Street passes over the Dequindre Cut in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.
The Fort Street–Pleasant Street and Norfolk & Western Railroad Viaduct is a bridge carrying six lanes of Fort Street over both Pleasant Street and multiple tracks comprising the Norfolk Southern Railway Detroit District and Conrail Shared Assets Lincoln Secondary and Junction Yard Secondary lines on the border of the Boynton and Oakwood Heights neighborhoods in Detroit, Michigan, just west of the Rouge River. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. The bridge underwent massive repairs and other construction in late 2010 and throughout much of 2011, which included narrowing the Fort Street boulevard north of the viaduct into a six-lane undivided road with a left-turns-only lane.
Trunk Line Bridge No. 1, also known as Peshekee River Bridge, is a bridge adjacent to US Highway 41/M-28 (US 41/M-28). It was the first of many trunkline bridges designed by the Michigan State Highway Department. It was built in 1914, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
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The Forest Route 157–Tamarack River Bridge, also known as the San Souci Bridge, was a bridge located on Federal Forest Highway 157 over the Tamarack River in Stambaugh Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999, and demolished in 2008.
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The 12 Mile Road–Kalamazoo River Bridge, also known as State Reward Bridge No. 53, is a filled-spandrel concrete arch bridge in Ceresco, Michigan, that carries 12 Mile Road over the Kalamazoo River. Built in 1920, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Bridge No. 3589 in Silver Creek Township, Minnesota is a reinforced concrete arch bridge carrying Minnesota State Highway 61 over the Stewart River just north of Two Harbors, Minnesota. The bridge was built in 1924, originally with a 70 feet (21 m) span and a width of 19 feet (5.8 m). It was widened to 39 feet (12 m) in 1939 because of increasing traffic loads. The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.
The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Grand Haven Coal Tipple is a coaling tower designed to feed coal to steam locomotives located on the 300 block of North Harbor Drive in Grand Haven, Michigan. It is the tallest structure in the city. The coal tipple was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
The US-12–Coldwater River Bridge was a road bridge carrying Old US-12 over the Coldwater River in Coldwater, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
The Masters Road–Belle River Bridge is a bridge carrying Masters Road over the Belle River in Riley Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.
The Vernier Street–Swan Creek Bridge was a historic bridge carrying Vernier Street over Swan Creek in Ira Township, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000. It was at one time one of the oldest remaining curved-chord though girder bridges, a design unique to the state of Michigan. The bridge was demolished in 2014.
The Wadhams Road–Pine River Bridge was a bridge carrying Wadhams Road over the Pine River in Saint Clair Township, Michigan. It was one of the few remaining multiple-span, curved-chord through girder bridges, a type unique to Michigan. The bridge was demolished in 2007.
The Grand Trunk Western Railroad Birmingham Depot is a former railroad train station located at 245 South Eton Street in Birmingham, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. As of 2018, the Big Rock Chophouse restaurant occupies the building.
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