Tulip Viaduct
Encyclopedia
Greene County, Indiana
Greene County is a county located in the U.S. state of Indiana, and determined by the U.S. Census Bureau to include the mean center of U.S. population in 1930. As of 2010, the population was 33,165. The county seat is Bloomfield....
that spans Richland Creek
Richland Creek
Richland Creek is a river in Texas.Richland Creek is also the name of the main creek flowing through Belleville, Illinois, and is a tributary to the Kaskaskia River.-References:**USGS Hydrologic Unit Map - State of Texas...
between Solsberry
Solsberry, Indiana
Solsberry is an unincorporated town in Beech Creek Township, Greene County, Indiana.-Geography:Solsberry is located at ....
and Tulip
Tulip, Indiana
Tulip is an unincorporated community in Highland Township, Greene County, Indiana....
. According to Richard Simmons and Francis Haywood Parker, authors of Railroads of Indiana, it is "easily the state's most spectacular railroad bridge". The bridge was built in 1905 and 1906 by the Indianapolis Southern Railway and successor Indianapolis Southern Railroad, which became part of the Illinois Central Railroad
Illinois Central Railroad
The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the central United States, with its primary routes connecting Chicago, Illinois with New Orleans, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama. A line also connected Chicago with Sioux City, Iowa...
in 1911. It is now part of the Indianapolis-Newton, Illinois
Newton, Illinois
Newton is the county seat of Jasper County, Illinois. The population was 3,069 at the 2000 Census and subsequently reported as 3,141 by a local newspaper in mid-2000. Newton is home to a large coal-fired power plant and Newton Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area.-Geography:Newton is located at...
line of the Indiana Rail Road
Indiana Rail Road
The Indiana Rail Road is a United States Class II railroad, originally operating over former Illinois Central Railroad trackage from Newton, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana, a distance of 155 miles...
.
History
Work on the bridge started on May 22, 1905 when a ground breaking ceremony was led by Joe Moss. It was finished in December of 1906 and is the longest rail trestleTrestle
A trestle is a rigid frame used as a support, especially referring to a bridge composed of a number of short spans supported by such frames. In the context of trestle bridges, each supporting frame is generally referred to as a bent...
in the United States and the third longest bridge of its kind in the world. It has 18 towers for support.
The original cost of the viaduct
Viaduct
A viaduct is a bridge composed of several small spans. The term viaduct is derived from the Latin via for road and ducere to lead something. However, the Ancient Romans did not use that term per se; it is a modern derivation from an analogy with aqueduct. Like the Roman aqueducts, many early...
was $246,504 which was estimated in 2004 dollars to be around $20 million. This massive structure was built using mostly Italian immigrant laborers. The laborers were paid up to 30 cents an hour, which was considered to be an excellent wage in 1906. The viaduct was constructed by Indianapolis Southern Railway and secretly financed by Illinois Central Railroad. It was built for train travel to transport coal from Greene County mines to large cities, such as Chicago. Passenger trains once traveled across the viaduct, but passenger service was discontinued in 1948.
According to a placard that used to be attached to the western side of the bridge (underneath the tracks on a large I-beam), the bridge was constructed by the New York Bridge Company, not the Indianapolis Southern Railway or its successor the Indianapolis Southern Railroad. In 2004 or earlier, the placard had been removed. Two 45 feet (13.7 m) sections were added to the bridge in 1916. Other than that, the bridge is as it was when it was originally constructed.
Over the years, a large amount of graffiti
Graffiti
Graffiti is the name for images or lettering scratched, scrawled, painted or marked in any manner on property....
has been spray-painted on the trestle, especially at the base of the towers nearest the road. The most well known graffiti is "MICHELLE WILL YOU MARRY ME?" right in the middle of the trestle just under the tracks. While no one knows for sure whether or not she said yes, or even if the man survived the escapade, it is still funny to see. Currently, it is very difficult if not impossible to read. Instead of removing the graffiti, it has remained on the viaduct. While it is not very appealing to the eyes, it has helped to preserve the viaduct. The spray-paint is so thick in some areas that rain and snow cannot affect the metal surface, causing the metal to remain intact. There is also a path that leads to the track surface. While Indiana Rail Road
Indiana Rail Road
The Indiana Rail Road is a United States Class II railroad, originally operating over former Illinois Central Railroad trackage from Newton, Illinois to Indianapolis, Indiana, a distance of 155 miles...
has placed no trespassing signs along the path and beside the tracks, people do still climb up there. Some even walk across the viaduct. Only one confirmed arrest has been documented.
Statistics
The bridge is 2295 feet (699.5 m) long and is 157 feet (47.9 m) above the ground at its highest point. It was built using 2700 tons of steelSteel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
and is composed of individual 40 feet (12.2 m) and 74 feet (22.6 m) spans supported by eighteen towers.