Jackson Boulevard Bridge

The Chicago River splits the City of Chicago, which has required numerous bridges to be constructed, and most of them are them are bascule bridges (Chicago Department of Transportation currently maintains and operates 37 movable bridges). One of these bridges is the Jackson Boulevard Bridge. It was built in 1916, making it one of the oldest of the deck truss style bascule bridges in Chicago. The bridge originally carried both directions of Route 66, but in 1955, Route 66 was bifurcated. The Adams Street Bridge now carriers Westbound Traffic, and the Jackson Boulevard Bridge carries the Eastbound traffic.

The Jackson Boulevard Bridge is one of the few bascule bridges in Chicago that is a true deck truss. Most of the other bridges have railing height trusses, which gives them characteristics of both a deck truss and a pony truss. Interestingly, this bridge is that the Sanitary District of Chicago took the lead in building this bridge. It was the fourth and last Loop bridge built by the Chicago Sanitary District, but it is the only one that remains. Apparently, the City of Chicago was lacking money at the time and there was pressure to remove the existing swing bridges from the river. This bridge replaced the 1888 Camelback truss center pier swing bridge that was at the site.

This bridge was the first Loop bridge to conform to the ideals of the 1909 plan for Chicago. This plan aimed to improve the aesthetics of the area and give a clear view of the surrounding area from the bridge deck. The bridge houses were built from masonry and were situated in a way that was not noticeable to pedestrians, instead of the wood clad structures that were used previously. In addition, the bridge machinery was covered in concrete housing, and did not move with the bridge, which gave it the appearance of a solid structure.

This bridge caused significant political conflict at that time. Joseph Strauss, who held the patent on the Strauss Trunnion Bascule Bridge, felt that his patent was being violated by the city. However, the Strauss Bascule Bridge Company served as a consulting engineer on this project, so the patent was not violated. A plaque was added to the bridge referencing the patent.