Schofield's Eau Claire River Bridge

Sometimes a structure is interesting not because of its age, who built it, or what happened on/in it, but simply because of what it is. Schofield’s Grand Avenue Bridge was one such structure. Built in 1931,² the bridge was not the first in this location by a long shot. There had been several other bridges, likely going back to the 1850s when a sawmill was built nearby. At only 91 feet in length, it was also not a particularly spectacular bridge at first glance. The Eau Claire River, which the bridge crossed, lacked the size and power of the nearby Wisconsin to warrant anything more substantial. Despite its small size and scant history, the Grand Avenue Bridge warrants all the appreciation of its larger brethren.

Looking East towards the former Brooks and Ross Mill Pond.
Image Credit: Historic American Engineering Database¹

Schofield's Hidden Gem       

The Grand Avenue Bridge was built in 1931⁴ as part of continuing efforts to widen and modernize Grand Avenue.⁵ For the crossing, Wausau Iron Works designed and built a type of bridge extremely uncommon in Wisconsin; a Parker Pony Truss. The Pony Truss and the Parker Truss are not unusual on their own. A Pony Truss is simply a low truss without overhead members. This sort of truss was more or less standard for spans of less than 100 feet and could be found on almost any rural road through the late 20^th century. The Parker Truss too was not unusual, the design, with its polygonal top chord, had been around since the late 19^th century. When the Grand Avenue Bridge was constructed, there were several Parker Trusses in Marathon County, including the Twin Parker Truss in Marathon City which had be built the previous year.  What wasn’t seen was the two styles being used in one bridge. The Pony Truss, as stated before, was preferred for short crossings while the Parker Truss was specifically designed to place the greatest depth of truss over the center of the span to allow it to cross much larger distances. Using the two together may have been counterintuitive but it did make for an attractive bridge.

A street level view of the bridge looking North.
Image Credit: Historic Engineering Database³

The Last of its Kind       

Attractive the bridge may have been, but irreplaceable it was not. In 1997, the 66-year-old bridge was replaced with the current one.⁶ The loss of the Eau Claire River Bridge may well have brought an end to Parker Pony road bridges in the State of Wisconsin.⁷ As of 2023, there are at most two surviving Parker Pony Trusses in the State of Wisconsin both of which are railroad bridges so unless one is rediscovered on some long-forgotten country road this unique bit of Wisconsin's transportation history is likely gone for good. 

A closeup of the Southwest span. Note the Art Deco railings along the cantilivered sidewalk.
Image Credit: Historic Engineering Database⁸