3rd Annual Historic Bridge Conference: Greater Missouri 2011

Lewis and Clark showing the western fronteer below the Eads Bridge- Photo taken by James Baughn

It is that time of year again! Summer time means swimming, travelling, visiting friends and families, and in this case, bridgehunting. The third annual Historic Bridge Conference, taking place during the weekend of 12-14 August will provide bridge enthusiasts, historians, engineers and tourists alike a look at the historic bridges and how they play a role in shaping the history of the United States in terms of their design, history, and its identity to the regions and communities they serve them.
While the first two conferences took place in Pittsburgh and provided a look at the unique historic bridges serving the greater Pittsburgh area (let alone learn about the history and culture of the city of steel), this year’s conference is different for two reasons. First and foremost, it will take place in America’s heartland; specifically, Missouri and Kansas. It will kick off with a tour of the bridges in St. Louis on the morning of 12 August, starting at 11am. Bridges worth seeing on the tour include the Eads Bridge- the first bridge to be constructed using steel, the Chain of Rocks Bridge- the only surviving bridge along the Mississippi that has a curve in the middle of the center span, and McKinley Bridge, a truss bridge with a double decker span. It will be followed by a dinner at the Veritas Cafe and Wine Bar, located at 1722 Clarkson Road in Chestertown at 7:30pm in the evening. James Baughn of the Historic Bridges of the US will host the event and speakers for the event will include Julie Bowers of Workin Bridges, Alyssa Lage, who led the preservation efforts in saving Appleton Bridge in Cape Giradeau County and Ed Darringer, who authored the book on reconstructing the Moscow Covered Bridge in Indiana, which was destroyed by flooding in 2008. Jason D. Smith of the Bridgehunter’s Chronicles will also speak on ways to improve historic preservation in the US, using his questionnaire from last year and Germany’s preservation policies as examples. A summary of the speeches will be provided at a later time.

Riverside Bridge in Ozark- Photo taken by James Baughn

There will a caravan tour along the Mother Road known as Route 66 the next day and there will be stops at many historic bridges along the way. This includes a presentation at Route 66 State Park in St. Louis County There will be some bridges that are off the beaten path that will accompany this tour. This includes visiting the Enochs Knob in Franklin County, where a group of preservationists led by Molly Hill are fighting to save it from destruction once a new bridge constructed alongside it is completed. Ms. Hill will provide the tourists with some information about the bridge. It will end with the tour of the bridges of Christian County in southwestern Missouri, where one of the bridges, the Riverside Bridge in Ozark is the target of effort by local preservation groups to save it from becoming scrap metal at the mercy of modernization. Kris Dyer is leading the effort and together with Jason D. Smith of the Bridgehunter’s Chronicles, will lead a tour of the bridges in Christian County beginning at the Riverside Bridge at 3:00pm. The tour will last 1-2 hours. There will also be an event that evening at 6:00pm at the Ozark Community Center in Ozark. On the 14th, the tour heads north to Kansas City and places to the west, where the only Waddel A-frame bridge in the country and the world’s lone double decker vertical lift bridge (whose lower deck raises to allow ships to pass through) are located. The Bridgehunter’s Chronicles will provide a documentary on these unique spans while in KC. An optional trip along the Missouri River is in store on the 15th, viewing the bridges along the Katy Trail, including the vertical lift bridge at Booneville, which is a focus of attempts to convert it into a pedestrian zone.

JAL Waddel Lift Bridge in Kansas City with a lower deck that can be lifted to allow ships to pass through- Photo taken by James Baughn

The second difference is the fact that we have co-hosts and more sponsors than in the past. The Historic Bridges of the US and its host James Baughn and the Bridgehunter’s Chronicles and its columnist Jason D. Smith will join Todd Wilson, who hosted the first two bridge conferences and is host of the website Bridgemapper.com, in coordinating the whole weekend event. We are hoping that we can attract more people than in the past and provide them with some interesting facts about the bridges and the regions they serve, while at the same provide them with plenty of opportunities to meet new people and have a great time at the event.

Photo taken by James Baughn in St. Louis

For more information about the event, please contact the following people below:
James Baughn: jbaughn@thecaperock.com or webmaster@bridgehunter.com. Note: If you are interested in participating in Friday night‘s event, you are to RSPV him before August 10. Cost for the event is $25 including dinner and entertainment
Todd Wilson: alancatt@gmail.com
Jason D. Smith:  JDSmith77@gmx.net Note: If interested in the tour of the Bridges of Christian County you can either contact him or Kris Dyer whose e-mail is below.
Kris Dyer: saveriversidebridge@gmail.com Note: If you want more information on the Saturday night event, please contact her.

The Bridgehunter’s Chronicles and its sister column the Flensburg Files will be covering the event with photos and impressions from the audience and hopefully some interviews in the process.
Both columns will be covering the trip to the USA and Denmark with the Chronicles covering the bridges of Copenhagen and those America’s heartland, with trips through Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Nebraska, the Dakotas and Minnesota and tours in the cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Des Moines, St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, the Quad Cities, just to name a few. The columns will be posted as the author can get internet access and a chance to jot down the impressions of the wonderful pieces of artwork that are still serving traffic today.