The McClugage Bridge carries U.S. Route 150 over Upper Peoria Lake & Peoria Lake in the Illinois River in the US state of

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

. The bridge's official name honors David H. McClugage,

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

of Peoria from 1937 to 1941. The crossing is actually composed of two bridges, one carrying westbound traffic and one carrying eastbound traffic.

History

The original span of the McClugage Bridge was designed as a steel

cantilever A cantilever is a rigid structural element that extends horizontally and is supported at only one end. Typically it extends from a flat vertical surface such as a wall, to which it must be firmly attached. Like other structural elements, a cant ...

bridge in 1939http://www.hanson-inc.com/bridges/bridges_mcclugage.htm to replace the Upper Free Bridge, an existing bridge across a narrow stretch of Upper Peoria Lake. Due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the bridge was not completed until 1948. An additional three-lane span of similar style was constructed immediately north of the existing bridge in 1982. Currently, the northern span carries westbound traffic and the original southern two-lane span carries eastbound traffic. The southern span was rehabilitated in 2000. During rehabilitation, an accident in 2000 killed three iron workers when scaffolding on the bridge collapsed into the river. Due to this tragedy, there was an effort to change the name of the bridge to "Ironworkers Memorial Bridge". However, instead of the name change, the iron workers were memorialized by a monument near the bridge that was dedicated in April 2001.

Replacement bridge

In 2019, construction began on replacing the deteriorated eastbound (original) span with a three-lane wide tied-arch bridge, along with a multi-use path on the right side. The new bridge is expected to open in fall 2023 with a $167 million price tag.

References

U.S. Route 24 U.S. Route 150 Bridges completed in 1948 Bridges completed in 1982 Bridges of the United States Numbered Highway System Bridges over the Illinois River Buildings and structures in Peoria, Illinois Bridges in Tazewell County, Illinois Road bridges in Illinois 1948 establishments in Illinois Steel bridges in the United States Cantilever bridges in the United States Bridges in Peoria County, Illinois {{Illinois-bridge-struct-stub