Des Moines River Bridge

In February of 1873, the Van Buren County Supervisors contracted with the Wrought Iron Bridge Company of Canton, OH to build a major wagon bridge over the Des Moines River at Keosauqua.

The bridge was completed by that fall. The bridge was heavily traveled for some 65 years. By the late 1930's the original bridge was showing wear and tear and was too narrow for present-day travel. In 1938 the Iowa State Highway Commission designed a replacement superstructure for the bridge.

The original stone abutments and piers were used for the new bridge. The bridge was a Designated Federal Aid Project. The contract for the new bridge was awarded in August of 1938 and was completed in 1939 for a cost of $86,141.

The 1039 trusses are technologically significant for their uncommon Warren web configuration. It is not known how many bridges of this design were built in Iowa, but is notable as the only such polygonal-chorded Warren remaining in Iowa today.

Note: This bridge was replaced in 2006-2007 with a portion of the original stonework from the bridge piers being used on the top column of the new piers. You can get details of its construction on the Iowa DOT website.