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Atlhough most old bridges get demolished
when they are obsolote, a few remain. These are the ones I've found in
northern Minnesota- north of the seven county metro area and I-94.
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The
Interstate Bridge: Duluth
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Interstate Bridge, Oblique View
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Closeup of the structure from the
pedestrian walkway underneath
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The older of the two bridges was
the Interstate Bridge. In 1959 the Duluth-Superior "High" Bridge opened,
and the Interstate Bridge closed at that time. Soaring 120 feet above
the harbor and 8000 feet long, the Duluth-Superior Bridge cost 20 million
dollars, then the largest single project partly in Minnesota. On Sept
24, 1971, the new bridge was named to honor John A. Blatnik, congressman
for 30 years and one of the persons instrumental in preserving the Boundary
Waters Canoe Area and a major sponsor of the Interstate highway program
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The
Arrowhead Bridge: Duluth
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Not much remains of the Arrowhead
Bridge today.
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Minnesota side of the Arrowhead Bridge,
1950s?
Vintage Postcard
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The other bridge in between Duluth and Superior was
built later and lasted longer. The Arrowhead Bridge was built in the late
1920s, a bit south of the Interstate Bridge. Also a toll bridge, it carried
US 2. The bridge was named after the Arrowhead Region, which had just
aquired it's name in a contest sponsored by a local tourist board. (This
was about the time the automobile made tourism to the area a possiblity,
and they needed a catchy name. They realized that the iron would soon be
gone, but tourism could last forerver).
In 1985, the Richard Bong bridge was built about a mile north
of here, and the Arrowhead bridge was closed and removed. Besides being
at 8300 feet the longest bridge partially in the state, it was the last
tied arch bridge to be built here.
Bong was a famous WWII flying ace from Superior, who shot down
40 enemy airplanes (The Red Baron's tally was 26) before being killed
in 1945 when a jet fighter he was testing malfunctioned.
Today not much is left of the Arrowhead Bridge, just a short
stub used as a fishing pier on the Wisconsin side. Part of the Lesure
Street Causeway, the approach road on the Minnesota side, was removed
as part of a wetlands reclamation effort.
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Old
US 2 Bridge: Bass Brook
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"Driver's" view of the Bass Brook
Bridge, looking east from a post office parking lot.
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A little farther down the bridge,
showing a better view of the pavement
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Side View of the Bass Brook Bridge
from the new bridge, looking southeast.
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Here's an abandonded bridge along
US 2 over Bass Brook in Cohasset. Note the railroad trestle right
behind it, and that someone has built a garage blocking one end. Although
there is no date on the bridge, according to Adam Froehlig highway
logs show the bridge was built in 1930. The replacement bridge was
likely constructed in 1969 when the stretch was widened to four lanes,
then rebuilt when the road was repaved in 1983.
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Big
Falls Railroad Trestle
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Oblique view of the railroad trestle.
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Normally I limit this
page to highway infrastructure, but this abandonded railroad trestle
in Big Falls was too cool to pass up. After the line was abandoned by
BN in the early 90's, Mn/DOT took it over, and leases it to the DNR as
a snowmobile/ATV trail. However this trestle was not reused; instead
the trail goes across a nearby highway bridge
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Page last updated:
May 2006
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