Tekamah City Bridge – Tekamah NE

Description

The Nebraska Department of Roads and Irrigation’s 1933-34 Biennial Report includes two photographs of the old Tekamah City Bridge, a tired looking Pratt half-hip pony truss, and two views of the attractive new concrete structure that replaced it. The report singles out the Tekamah Bridge and a Dodge County underpass, describing them as “monolithic concrete structures of solid concrete without joints from the bottom of one footing, up and over the span, and down to the bottom of the other footing.” It continues that “the slab or deck takes the form of a very flat arch with a comparatively thin slap at the crown. This feature promotes economy and, being of a curved arched shape, it naturally lends itself to a beautifying architectural treatment.” The Nebraska Bureau of Roads and Bridges designed this concrete rigid frame structure in February 1934. The project was funded using federal relief money, specifically a program which required 25% of any appropriation to be used for urban highways. On March 20, 1934, the bureau awarded a construction contract for the bridge to the Koehler Construction Company of Sterling, Nebraska, for $49,343 (the Lincoln Steel Works fabricated the ornamental guardrails). The Deputy County Superintendent of Highways recalls a dance held on the bridge to celebrate its completion later in 1934. The bridge rests on continuous concrete retaining walls, which appear to have been part of a larger project to channelize Tekamah Creek through the town.