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Twelfth Street Bridge #1
Chicago Tribune, June 20, 1863
SUNK.—Twelfth street bridge has gone to the bottom. It was a miserable, rickety, floating concern, as most of our city readers know, and a long way behind the age. Yesterday, a schooner ran against it, and the old fashioned nuisance sunk to the bottom. It is to be hoped that the Board of Public Works will recommend, and the Common Council order, the construction of a bridge at Twelfth street, that will be neither a hinderance nor a discredit to the city.
Twelfth Street Bridge #2
Chicago Tribune, September 28, 1867
THE TWELFTH STREET BRIDGE.—A West Side correspondent calls attention to the lack of facilities for crossing the river at Twelfth street, where a new bridge is being built. He says that one or two small boats are plying there, charging five cents a head, but that the only way of getting into them is by gong down a rickety ladder, uncomfortable for men, and exceedingly unpleasant for the ladies and children who accompanied him.
Chicago Tribune, August 28, 1868
NEW BRIDGES.—The work of constructing the new Twelfth street bridge is rapidly progressing, the centre pier being now completed. It is stated that a movement is now on foot to secure the bridge of this river at Twenty-second street at Canal (South Side).
Mr. J.K. Thompson’s Truss Bridge design patented on September 8, 1868 and used on the Twelfth Street Bridge #2.
Twelfth Street Bridge #3
Chicago Tribune, June 4, 1887
THE TWELFTH STREET BRIDGE IS NOW OPEN.
The new Twelfth street bridge, on which work has been progressing for so long a time, has been sufficiently completed to be opened to the public today. This isn one of the most expensive structures ever built by the City of Chicago. On the east side of the river the viaduct spans the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific and Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroads with three truss spans of 123 feet each. The east bridge from the end of these spans to the east line of Clark street is supported by three heavy wrought-iron columns, and the roadway built on the level of the tracks affords access to the numerous freight depots in the vicinity. The approaches of the viaduct are built on Clark street, north and south from Twelfth, with an inclination of one foot in forty. Westward from the railroad tracks to the river a roaqdway is built of wooden trestles, as it is anticipated that the railroads will cross the street here, and it was not deemed best to erect a permanent iron structure until it could be determined what arrangement would be required for the spans. The river swing bridge is of steel, being the first bridge of this material ever built in Chicago. It is 220 feet long by 59 feet wide and similar in design to the Lake street>/a> and Rush street bridges. Westward the structure crosses the tracks of the Chicago & Great Western Road with plate-girder span of 58½ feet, one truss span of 72 feet, one truss span of 108 feet, and one truss span 125 feet long. There will also be an approach from the south side of Twelfth street and another approach on Lumber street. The first 300 feet of this approach is of plate girders divided into spans of 50 feet each and continued from the end of this to the street grade, with the usual walling and filling. This approach is 40 feet wide; all other parts of the work are 58 feet wide, divided into two roadways, each 21 feet wide, for teams, and two sidewalks 8 feet in width. The total length of the bridge is 1,550 feet.
When the original proposition to build this bridge was presented to the City Council only a single track was contemplated. The Great Western Railway Company desired that the bridge be built four feet higher than the plans proposed by the city, and several conferences resulted. The railroad finally agreed to pay the entire cost of the centre pier and also the east pier. With this arrangement a considerable portion of the appropriation remained, and it was then decided to change the plans to a double-roadway bridge bridge. The Great Western Company paid for the whole of the work on the west side of the river, and also the cost of the centre pier. The Lake Shore & Michigan Southern and the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Roads paid for the three spans over their tracks, and the rest of the amount was paid by the city. The total cost was $340,365. City-Engineer Artingstall is greatly gratified at the outcome of the enterprise, and unhesitatingly pronounces it the finest piece of work of its kind in Chicago. It turns with steam.
Twelfth St. Bridge #3
1922
Twelfth Street Bridge #4
Chicago Tribune, January 14, 1917
Commissioner of Public Works Frank I. Bennett announced he probably will reject the bids for construction of the new Twelfth Street bridge. The proposals are about 100 per cent more than the cost as estimated by city engineers. The best bid received was $1,173,000.
Twelfth St. Bascule Bridge #4
One of the 1916 Design Proposals
Strauss Bascule Patent 1,211,639, January 9, 1917
Used for 12th (Roosevelt Road) Street Bridge #4
Chicago Tribune, June 15, 1919
Roosevelt Way Bridge Work Starts Tomorrow.
Work on the Twelfth street bridge, now called Roosevelt way, will be started tomorrow, the department of public works announced yesterday.
Straightening South Branch Chicago River
Construction Program
Rearrangement of Railroad Facilities.
1926
Roosevelt Road Bridge #4 Under Construction
July 24, 1927
Chicago Tribune, December 16, 1929
FIRST BOAT SAILS IN NEW CHANNEL OF CHICAGO RIVER
The first vessel yesterday through the newly straightened Htreach of the Chicago river reaching from Polk to streets. The boat was the freighter McFarland. commanded by Capt. Forrest Maloney.
At a formal commemoration of completion of the straightening, which cost $9.000,000, a string of boats will pass through the new channel on next Thursday. The flotilla will be led by the passenger ship Alabama and the naval reserve craft Wilmette, the flying of banners and the of bands.
On Thursday the event will ba further celebrated by a banquet in the Palmer house. Loran D. Gayton, city engineer, will be the toastmaster, and Congressmen Morton D. of Peoria and Frank R. Reid of Aurora and others will speak. The new channel will be opened to traffic today.
The S.S.O.S. McFarland of Fairport passing through the Roosevelt road bridge in new channel between Polk and l8th streets, which will not be formally opened until Thursday.
Roosevelt Road Bridge #4 Operator’s House
November 21, 1929