Mill Creek Bridge is a historic structure located in a rural area north of

Clarence, Iowa Clarence is a city in Cedar County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,039 at the time of the 2020 census. History The community was originally called "Onion Grove" because of the widespread growth of wild onions along Mill Creek. The v ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

.The Cedar Bluff Bridge over the Cedar River was the first all-iron span built in Cedar County in 1877. Four more iron spans were built later that year, as were several others over the years before this bridge was completed in 1889. It is the only one of those bridges left, and one of the oldest

pony truss A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or s ...

bridges in the state of Iowa. Citizens in Dayton Township petitioned the Cedar County Board of Supervisors in June 1888 for the bridge over Mill Creek. The supervisors contracted with Ward and Keepers of

Clinton, Iowa Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 24,469 as of 2020. Clinton, along with DeWitt (also located in Clinton County), was named in honor of the sixth governor of New York, DeWitt Cl ...

to design and build the bridge. The span was built on concrete-filled iron cylinder piers, with timber stringer approach spans. Over the years sub-structural alterations have been made to the bridge. It has subsequently been abandoned and its deck is in a deteriorating condition. The bridge was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1998.

References

Bridges completed in 1889 National Register of Historic Places in Cedar County, Iowa Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa Truss bridges in Iowa Iron bridges in the United States Buildings and structures in Cedar County, Iowa {{Iowa-struct-stub