The Highway 78 Bridge at the Red River is an eight-span through

truss bridge 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 ...

over the Red River between

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

and

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Oklahoma State Highway 78 State Highway 78 is long (97 km) state highway in southern Oklahoma. It runs from the Red River (where it crosses into Texas as State Highway 78) to Tishomingo. It has no lettered spur routes. Route description State Highway 78 enters ...

Texas State Highway 78 State Highway 78 (SH 78) is a state highway that follows surface roads in a predominantly southwest-to-northeast direction in the Dallas area before traveling north-northeast to the Oklahoma State border. Route description The highway's south ...

. It was built as a federal relief project during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's

New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...

. Today the bridge and the area retain the look and feel of the time of its construction. As part of Highway 78 the bridge's average daily traffic (as of 2006) was 1,700 cars per day. The original bridge was demolished after flood damage and a new bridge built in 2018

History

The State Highway 78 Bridge at the Red River replaced a suspension bridge that collapsed on January 15, 1934. The former bridge had been opened as a toll bridge in July 1927. It was purchased by Oklahoma and Texas for use as a free bridge. It collapsed in a storm after the swinging bridge's wire cables became twisted and snapped. As a Federal Relief Project funded by the

National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 The National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933 (NIRA) was a US labor law and consumer law passed by the 73rd US Congress to authorize the president to regulate industry for fair wages and prices that would stimulate economic recovery. It also e ...

construction began on February 16, 1937. It was completed in 1938. The bridge marks the location of Sowell's Bluff.

Architecture

The Oklahoma Highway Commission designed the bridge. Constructed in 1937-1938 by the Kansas City Bridge Co. of

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

. the bridge is designed as a rare example of a K-Parker through truss bridge with camelback pony spans. The bridge consists of eight riveted K-truss through spans with two camelback pony truss spans at each end. The Illinois Steel Bridge Company of

Jacksonville Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

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

was subcontracted to fabricate the trusses.

Overview

* Length of largest span: 210.0 ft. * Total length: 2,108.0 ft. * Deck width: 24.0 ft. * Vertical clearance above deck: 15.9 ft.

References

Buildings and structures in Bryan County, Oklahoma Buildings and structures in Fannin County, Texas Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Oklahoma Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas Bridges completed in 1937 Transportation in Fannin County, Texas Former toll bridges in Oklahoma Former toll bridges in Texas National Register of Historic Places in Bryan County, Oklahoma National Register of Historic Places in Fannin County, Texas Steel bridges in the United States Parker truss bridges in the United States Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States {{Texas-bridge-struct-stub

History

Architecture

See also

Overview

References