Kern Bridge

Kern Bridge or Yaeger Bridge crossed the Le Sueur River in Blue Earth County in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It was built in 1873 using a bowstring through truss design by the Wrought Iron Bridge Company. It was 183.5 feet (56 m) long and carried a local road.[2][3] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 as Minnesota's only bowstring arch truss bridge and oldest road bridge still in use.[4] However it was closed to vehicle traffic in 1991.[5]

Kern Bridge
Kern Bridge in 2019
Nearest citySkyline, Minnesota
Coordinates44°6′35″N 94°2′30″W
AreaLess than one acre
Built1873
ArchitectWrought Iron Bridge Company
Architectural styleBowstring through truss
MPSBlue Earth County MRA
NRHP reference No.80001950[1]
Added to NRHPJuly 28, 1980

In 2019, the Minnesota Department of Transportation announced plans to dismantle the bridge and store it for eventual reuse elsewhere.[6] According to the department's website, it has been removed and is available for suitable relocation.[7]

Less than five miles downstream from its original site, the historic 1873 Kern Bridge has found a new home connecting the Land of Memories Park to Sibley Park in Mankato. Mankato will receive federal funding (80 percent of cost) to relocate and rehabilitate the bridge. Although Mankato is urban, the future Kern Bridge setting is wooded, crosses the Blue Earth River and is a similar setting to the original bridge site. Pedestrians and bicyclists will access the bridge through the existing trail system.

The bridge will be seen from the north via a scenic overlook and from the south via Hwy 60/Hwy 169. Though the proposal included use of extensive approach spans to meet the river’s width, the choice of a streamlined girder will allow the arch to be most visually present, an important consideration in re-listing the bridge on the National Register of Historic Places, Mankato’s proposal noted.

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. Nord, Mary Ann (2003). The National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota. Minnesota Historical Society. ISBN 0-87351-448-3.
  3. "CRUbridgeappa" (PDF). MNDot. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-05-19.
  4. Gimmestad, Dennis (January 1980). "Minnesota Historic Properties Inventory Form: Kern Bridge" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-12-13. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. Linehan, Dan (2007-05-16). "Old bridge needs new use". Mankato Free Press. Mankato, Minn. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  6. Fischenich, Mark (April 14, 2019). "Kern Bridge, longest of its type in U.S., to be dismantled and stored for reuse". Mankato Free Press. Mankato, Minnesota. If all goes according to plan, the bridge's marathon assignment spanning the Le Sueur River will end late this summer when the wrought iron structure will be dismantled, put in storage, and left to await a yet-to-be-identified opportunity to rise again as a bike-pedestrian overpass at some other location.
  7. "Available bridges: Kern Bridge (Bridge L5669)". Minnesota Department of Transportation. State of Minnesota. 2020. The bridge was removed from this site, dismantled, and stored for relocation in winter 2020.
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