Chester Bridge
Coordinates37°54′11″N 89°50′11″W / 37.90306°N 89.83639°W / 37.90306; -89.83639
Carries2 lanes of Route 51/ IL 150
CrossesMississippi River
LocalePerryville, Missouri and Chester, Illinois
Maintained byMissouri Department of Transportation
Characteristics
DesignContinuous truss bridge
Total length2,826 feet (861 m)
Width22 feet (7 m)
Longest span670 feet (204 m)
Clearance below104 feet (32 m)
History
OpenedAugust 23, 1942
Location

The Chester Bridge is a continuous truss bridge connecting Missouri's Route 51 with Illinois Route 150 across the Mississippi River between Perryville, Missouri and Chester, Illinois. It is the only motor-traffic bridge spanning the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cape Girardeau, Missouri.[1]

History

Located at river mile marker 109.5, the Chester Bridge is a two-lane traffic truss bridge which was constructed by Sverdrup and Parcel and Associates, Inc. of St. Louis, Missouri. Construction began in 1941 and was finished in 1942 at a cost of $1.385 million (1942 dollars).[1] The bridge opened on August 23, 1942, and operated as a toll bridge until January 1, 1989.[2] The main span was destroyed by a severe tornadic force thunderstorm on July 29, 1944, and reconstructed 2 years later. The bridge serves about 6,400 vehicles per day.[3]

Up to 1989, a toll was charged for crossing the bridge.[4]

Future

The first plans for a new bridge were developed in March 2018,[5] Inspections in 2020 showed the bridge structure to be "functionally obsolete" and in poor condition, imposing a weight limit of 25 tons.[6][7][8] The Missouri Department of Transportation originally planned to replace the bridge by 2028, but shortened the time-frame to 2026.[7] Construction on a new bridge began in September 2023.[9][10] The new bridge, the Don Welge Memorial Bridge, will be a more modern cable-stayed bridge. The estimated cost of the replacement bridge is approximately $284 million.[11]

Chester Welcome Center

Popeye

The Chester Welcome Center is located in Segar Park next to the Chester Bridge and overlooks the Mississippi River. The park was dedicated to E. C. Segar who was born on December 8, 1894, in Chester, Illinois.[12] Segar is most noted for his cartoon comic "Popeye” which he created in 1929 from his recollections of a local scrapper on the Mississippi River. A six-foot “life-size” bronze statue of Popeye stands near the bridge.[13][14]

The Chester Bridge can be seen in the 1967 film In the Heat of the Night, although in the film a highway sign for the (non-existent) "Arkansas 49" highway appears on the east (Illinois) side of the bridge.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "City of Chester, Illinois". Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  2. ↑ Map of the Missouri State Highway System Archived 2012-09-13 at the Wayback Machine as of January 1, 1953
  3. ↑ "Bridgehunter.com". Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  4. ↑ "History | Missouri Department of Transportation". www.modot.org. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  5. ↑ Ruch, Amber (March 14, 2018). "Environmental study being conducted on the Chester, IL Bridge". KFVS-TV. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
  6. ↑ Mandy Robertson (2020-09-04). "Weight limit on Chester Bridge reduced to 25 tons". WSIL. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  7. 1 2 "Chester Bridge | Missouri Department of Transportation". www.modot.org. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  8. ↑ Writer, Pete SpitlerStaff. "MoDOT evaluating Chester Bridge for replacement". Star Courier - Kewanee, IL. Archived from the original on 2021-10-09. Retrieved 2021-02-17.
  9. ↑ "Construction on the Route 51 Mississippi River Bridge Begins in Perry County". Missouri Department of Transportation. September 5, 2023. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
  10. ↑ Mohundro, Mike (September 5, 2023). "Crews start construction work on the new Chester Bridge this week". WSILTV. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
  11. ↑ "MoDOT Selects Team to Replace Chester Bridge". Missouri Department of Transportation. March 8, 2023. Retrieved December 26, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Popeye Character Trail Map" (PDF). City of Chester, Illinois. July 2012. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
  13. ↑ Jerry Hay (2013). Mississippi River: Historic Sites and Interesting Places. ISBN 9781467562508.
  14. ↑ Jerome Pohlen (2012). Oddball Illinois. ISBN 9781613740354.


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