OMB No. 1024-0018 (Rev. 8-88) UnitedStates Department of the Interior i | ,., .,..i.{ a,_7 NationalPark Service ;'' NationalRegister of Historic Places Lt51v D \4ct3OU'] RegistrationForm Thfs torm is for usg in nominating or roqussling deiermination3of eligibility lor Individual propedios or districlg. Seo instructionr i^ Guidolineslor Compldting National Registet Fotma (National Register Bullelin'16). Complele €ach item by ma.king 1C in ihe appropriate box o. by onioring tho r€quested Information.It an itom dogs nol appv lo ths proporv boing docum€nlsd, gntgr'lVA' for'noi opplicablo.' For lunclions, stylo3, matgrials, and aroas of .igniticancg, enlo, only lhq cslogorigs and subcotegorig3listed in thg instructiom. For additional opacg us€ continuation sh€ot8 (Form 1G9006).Typo all er ri€!. 1. Nameof Property historicname Meridian Bridge othername/site number Yankton Bridge; NEHBSNumber CD00-256 2. Locatlon street& number U.S. Highway 81 over the Missouri River N not for publication city,town just south of Yankton,South Dakota x vicinity state NE; SD countyCedar, NE; Yankton,SD code 027, 135 zip code 57078 3. Classiflcatlon Ownershipof Property State of South Dakota Numberof Resourceswithin Property Categoryof Property structure Contributing Noncontributing 0 0 buitdings 0 0 sites 1 0 structures 0 0 objects 1 0 Totat Numberof contributingresources previously listed in the NationatRegister: 0 Nameof retatedmuttipte property tisting: Highway Bridges in Nebraska, 187O-L942 4. State/FederalAgency Certlflcatlon As lhe dssignatsdauthority under ths NalionalHistoric Prsservation Act of 1966,as am6nded,I herebycsn y that this X nomination requestfor determinationof eligibilitymeets the documentationslandards for registeringproperties in the National Rsgislerol HisioricPlacss and mselslhe proceduraland prolsssionalrequir€m€nts sst torth in 36 CFRPart 60. In my opinion,the meets does not meet the National RegisterCriteria. .*f,{ rllqt tt/rs1rt- of certifying official Stateor Federalagency and bureau roperty X meets does not meetthe NationalRegister Criteria. May 10, 1993 re of com Director. Nebraska State Historical Societv Stateor Federalagency and bureau 5. Natlonal Park Servlce Certlfication l, hereby,certify that this propertyis: enteredin the NationalRegister see continuationsheet determinedeligible for the National Register_ see continuationsheet determinednot eligiblefor the NationalRegister removedfrom the NationalRegister other (explain:) Signatureof the Keeper Date of Aclion 6. Functlonor Use HistoricFunction (enter categories from instructions) CurrentFunction (enter categories from instructions) TRANS PO RTATI O N/ro ad -rel a ted TRANS P O RTATI O N/roa d- rel a t ed 7. Descrlptlon ArchitecturalClassification (enter categoriesfrom instructions) Materials(enter categories from instructions) OTHER / ngtd-connectedPratt vertical-lift truss foundationN/A walls N/A roof N/A other N/A D€scribEprssgr|| and hisloricphysical appoaranca. Locatedjust south of Yankton, South Dakota, the Meridian Bridge spans the Missouri River in a set- ting that has changedlittle since the structure'speriod of significance. Despitevarious modifications, noted below, the Meridian Bridge today retains a largemeasure of integrity of location, design,setting, materials, workmanship, feeling and association. A description of the structure follows: soannumbet: 1,9 construclionaata: \924 spanlength: 250.0' constructioncos: $1,146,319.00 totall€ngth: 3013.0' currontcondition: excellent roadwaywdt.: 33.0' atterarions: 1953: lower deck converted into highway use; 1969: partial rebuilding of south approach; early 1980s : all other approachspans replaced and vertical-lift span deactivated superstructure:double-dec\ riveted Pratt vertical-lift truss with Pratt through truss and steel girders substructure:solid concrete abutmentsand piers floor/decking:steel Seecontinuation sheet 8. Slatement of Slqnlflcance Certityingofficial has consideredthe significanceof thisproperty in relationto otherproperties: statewide ApplicableNational Register Crileria C CriteriaConsiderations (Exceptions) N/A Areas of Significance Engineeritrg Period of Significance 1920 - 1924 (The period of significanceis derived from the original constmctiondate.) SignificantDates r924 CulturalAtfiliation N/A SignificantPerson N/A ArchitecVBuilder(Designer) Harrington, Howard and Ash, KansasCity MO (Fabricator) American Bridge Comp?Dy,New York NY (Builder) K"lly Atkilson Compsny,Chicago IL (superstructure);Missouri Valley Bridge and lron Company,Leavenworth-KS (substructure) Statesignificance ol propsrty,and justify crit€ria, crit€ria consid€rations and arsas of significancenotsd above. CarryingU_.S. Highway 81 over the MissouriRiver, the MeridianHighway Bridge connects downtown Yankt-on,South Dakotaon the north with rural CedarCounry orithe iouth,- Prior to the bridge's completioninL924, transportation across the MissouriRiver at ihis point reliedon eitherferry servi'ce, inaugurated.in 1870,.or a seasonallyoperated pontoon bridge, installed in 1890. As a pi:otectiori againstice the p,ontoonbriiige-was disissembled eaih-year bcfore winter freezea'nd spring - 4*ugg, thaw and then rebuilt when the pontoonscould be placedon ofen wateror firm ice. The disruitioi^trade was particularlytroublesome for Yanktonmerchants, who couniednorrhem Nebraska in their territory. In 1915,Yankton business interests organized a privatebridse companv and sainedfederal approval1o bu!l{ a-perrnanent bridge across the Missouri,b:ut the enteipriselipsed wit}ithe country's entranceinto world War I. In 1919, the projectwas revivedwith tha fu[ b-ackingof the yankt-on Chamberof Commerce,which helpedorgaiizi a new bridgecompany, with local seEdmerchant D.B. Gumeyas president. In additionio its regionalimportanci. the iroposedbridse would be one of the last major litlf-q. an ilternational highwayrunning from Winniireg,Canada t6 MexicoCity, Mexico. Sincethis road followedthe SixthPrirrcipal Meridiai, it wascomriroiiy called the "Meridianiiighway." The Yanktonboosters named both theii bridgecompany and bridgeafter the route. In January1920, the MeridianHighway Bridge Companv retained Harrinqton. Howard and Ash of KansasCity, Missouri,to designalombined iailroad-ani highwaybridge]wifh a movablespan ro allow unobstructednavigation. established in 1914with John-LyleHarririgion [1868-1942] as'senior partner, the engineering,firm-,was especiallywell respectedfor its movablebridges. While in a previousPartlership with bridge engineerJohn AlexanderLow Waddell,Harrington had helped {evelop a majo-r movable type, which is still known as the Waddell and Harrington Vertical Lift. Operatingon the same.principal as c-ounterbalanced,hung window sash,the deiign employed"a simple.span equipped with maihineryfor operation,suspeni[ed at eachend by wire r6pesw:hich pass over sheaveson towersand connectlo counterweightsabout equal to the spanweight." In their plans for -the Yanktonbridge, the KansasCity firm incorporateda standard,Waddell and Harringtonvertical-lift sqan, measuring 250 feet in lengthwith a riraximumlift of 27'feet. Like the other six river spansin the bridge,the vertical-liftspai was a heavy,riveted, steel, Pratt trusswith flat upper-chord p-redominatelychannel-section we5, and concretei2iers. Afproachedby exrended, trestlework on both shores,the trusseswere equipped with wvoconciete decklj an upper-levelabove the top chord for highway traffic, and a lower levei, just abovethe bottom chord, foi iailroad traffic. Originally,the companyhad loped to financethe bridgethrough an initial stocksubscription, covering future maintenancecosts and shareholderdividends by toll charges.However, the vCnturewas shy severalhundred thousand dollars of the estimatedcosi when,in the fall of tgiO, it awardedits firsi X S." continuationsheet Ofvl8 No. 1024-0OtE (8 88) UnitedStates Department of the lnterior NationalPark Service National Register of Historic Places ContinuatlonSheet Section number B Page Highway Bridgesin Nebraska,1870-1942 construction contract for substructure work to the Missouri Valley Bridge and lron Company of Leavenworth, Kansas. When the substnrcture was completedtwo years later, the company still had not raised ali the necessarycapital, causing a temporary suspensioriof activity. Construction finally resumed in the fall of. 7923, with Kelly Atkinson Company of Chicago serving as contractor; the American Bridge Company as fabricator. The steel work was completed in the spring of 7924, and, the lift span was raised for the first time in July. When the bridge was officially opened to traffic in October 1924, the total cost stood at $1,146,319, Although the lower deck was equippedwith trackage,the anticipated rail route never materialized,and the bridge remaineda pure highway facility. The construction of the Meridian Highway Bridgewas an undisputedboon for the Yanlton region, but it was of less immediate advantageto the bridge company'sshareholders, who earned a total of about tlvo percent on their investment over a tvyenty-yearperiod, ln 1946, the bridge company agreed to sell the toll bridge to the City of Yankton for $700,000. After recovering the expensethrough toll collection, the city turned the bridge into a free facility, which was subsequentlytaken over by the State of South Dakota. The toll bridge era ended in 1953, the sameyear that the bridge's previously- idle lower deck was converted into a highway lane, allowing one-way traffic on both levels. After a partial rebuilding of the south approach in 1969, all remaining