The Highway 79 Bridge, a majestic two-span Warren truss structure, once held pride of place in Clarendon, Arkansas. Erected by the distinguished Austin Bridge Company between 1930 and 1931, it stood tall and resolute over the White River, carrying the two-lane U.S. Route 79 (US 79) across its span. The bridge’s steel truss, stretching 720 feet (220 meters), rested upon four concrete pillars, with the outer pairs positioned 160 feet (49 meters) apart and the central pair set 400 feet (120 meters) apart.
The concrete approaches, reaching more than 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) across neighbouring bodies of water to the west, underscored the sheer scale of this majestic bridge. However bittersweet its history may have been. The bridge was enlisted in the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, a testament to its engineering excellence. But the mirth of its construction was cruelly fleeting. In August 2016, a successor bridge opened to the south, leaving the Highway 79 Bridge to linger in the twilight.
Today, it continues to stand, now being considered for restoration as a bike and pedestrian path, potentially finding a way back to its former splendor.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
Written by No Other
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