Canadian River Wagon Bridge

In 1915, Hemphill County contracted to erect a bridge to span the Canadian River. Construction of the Canadian River Wagon Bridge was completed in July, 1916. The bridge was comprised of seventeen 153.5 ft. pin-connected Parker through-truss spans; the dimensions being 16 ft. in width and 2,635 ft. in total length. After its completion it was said to be the largest steel structure west of the Mississippi. In 1923, it fell victim to the raging waters of the Canadian River which cut a new channel around the north end of the bridge necessitating the extension on the north end of four identical spans and an approach span. The bridge’s 3,255 ft. length now made it the longest pin-connected bridge in Texas.

In recent years a committee of interested citizens raised funds, along with matching grants, to renovate the bridge, laying wooden planked flooring, decking, and installing side-guard railings to create a walking bridge. After five years of hard work, the Canadian River Wagon Bridge was reopened on July 1, 2000. It was restored as part of a new scenic hiking and biking trail over the Canadian River Valley and wetlands habitat.

This bridge is the longest known simple span pin connected highway truss bridge in the entire country. After being abandoned without a deck for many decades, the bridge was redecked for pedestrian use. Considering the length of the bridge, this is a very impressive preservation success story!

The history of the bridge is somewhat confusing. The Historic American Engineering Record states the following:
This 3,255′-0″-long structure is the longest pin-connected bridge in Texas, and was the state’s longest metal truss bridge prior to the completion of the Rainbow Bridge connecting Orange and Port Arthur in 1938. Two previous bridges at this site built in 1888 and 1889 were washed away by floods, and after some delays, voters finally approved a 1915 initiative to build a more permanent crossing of the river. The structure completed in 1916 included seventeen 155′-0″ long and 27′-0″ high pin-connected Parker through trusses for a 2,635′-0″ total length. The 16′-0″ roadway rested atop concrete piers with steel footings driven 65′-0″ into the riverbed. When high water widened the river in 1923, the county paid the Austin Bridge Company of Dallas to provide four additional Parker through trusses with the same dimensions and the same substructure. This increased the bridge’s length by 620′-0″. By the 1950s, the 16′-0″ roadway had become too narrow to safely carry passing traffic. In 1953, a new $1 million concrete and steel structure, built with state highway funds by the Austin Bridge Company of Dallas, bypassed the original bridge.

Where it is:

The Canadian River Wagon Bridge is in Canadian, Texas, in Hemphill County. It can be reached from U.S. 60, 0.1 miles south of U.S. 83.

Maps:

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