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Information About

Government Bridge




  carries 2 lanes of roadway<br>1 rail line
  crosses Mississippi River
  locale Davenport, Iowa and Rock Island, Illinois
  design Steel Truss Bridge
  open 1896


The Government Bridge, or Arsenal Bridge, spans the Mississippi River connecting Rock Island, Illinois and Davenport, Iowa . It is located near upper Mississippi mile 483 at . It is adjacent to Mississippi River Lock and Dam number 15.

Government Bridge replaced two bridges on or near it's current location. The first bridge, constructed in the early 1850's and located around 1500 feet upstream, was the first bridge to ever span the Mississippi. However, it did not have a movable span and was determined to be a hazard to navigation and after it was damaged by ice in 1868 it was replaced by a second bridge by 1872. All that remains of the first bridge are two piers on opposite sides of the river. The second bridge had a draw-span, but was determined to be too small and was replaced by the current swing-span bridge which was placed on the same piers as the second bridge.


EXTERNAL LINKS


  structure Bridges
  place Mississippi River
  bridge Government Bridge (Arsenal Bridge)
  upstream Iowa-Illinois Memorial Bridge
  upstream Signs
  downstream Rock Island Centennial Bridge