Sponable Bridge

Information and Findings From Michigan Historic Bridge Inventory

Description

The McKeown Bridge, also called the Sponable Bridge, is located on McKeown Road over the Thornapple River between Old M-79 and River Road in Hastings Township of Barry County. It is a single span steel Pratt through truss bridge 119 feet long, 16.5 feet wide, and approximately 13 feet high from deck to the underside of the truss. The bridge's superstructure is an eight panel steel truss with steel floor beams, stringers and a transverse timber deck. The abutments which support the bridge on either bank are of fieldstone. The bridge is painted black to protect the steel. Lattice work highlights and braces the railings. McKeown Road Bridge was built in 1903 by the Massillon, Ohio, Iron Company for Hastings Township at a total cost of $2,865.

The McKeown Road Bridge received its current, official name during the 1930s when electric companies extended their services to rural areas and developed a system of naming rural road to aid in servicing lines and billing customers. The road and bridge received their name from C.J. McKeown, a local farmer, who owned the form Sponable farm on the east side of the road north of the Thornapple River. The McKeown Bridge is the last metal truss highway bridge in Barry County.

About the McKeowen Road Bridge, From Michigan Historic Sites Online

Narrative Description

The McKeown Bridge, also called the Sponable Bridge, is located on McKeown Road over the Thornapple River between Old M-79 and River Road in Hastings Township of Barry County. A new concrete bridge is to be located across the Thornapple River one mile directly west of the McKeown Road Bridge. Construction begins in summer 1997. The land on the both banks west of the bridges is set aside for a public park. To the east, the land is privately owned. McKeown Road Bridge is a single span steel Pratt through truss bridge. The bridge is 119 feet long, 16 feet 6 inches wide, and approximately 13 feet high from the deck to the underside of the truss. The bridge's superstructure is an eight panel steel truss with steel floor beams, stringers and a transverse timber deck. The abutments which support the bridge on either bank are of fieldstone. The bridge is painted black to protect the steel. Lattice work highlights and braces the railings. McKeown Road Bridge was built in 1903 by the Massillon, Ohio, Iron Company for Hastings Township at an approximate cost of $2,090. Together with the fieldstone abutments constructed by the township to support the bridge, the total cost of the project was $2,865.

Statement of Significance

The McKeown Road Bridge is a well-preserved example of a Pratt through truss bridge, once a common, but now rapidly vanishing means of providing transportation over rivers in the early twentieth century. The bridge is the only steel truss bridge remaining in Barry County. Despite the area's history as a bridge site, no bridge was then standing at the time the existing bridge was proposed in 1902 to 1903. McKeown Road Bridge received its current, official name during the 1930s when electric companies extended their services to rural areas and developed a system of naming rural roads to aid in servicing lines and billing customers. The road and bridge received their name from C. J. McKeown, a local farmer, who owned the former Sponable farm on the east side of the road north of the Thornapple river.
Marker Name McKeown Road Bridge

Marker Text

McKEOWN ROAD BRIDGE This steel Pratt through truss bridge was erected for Hastings Township in 1903. The township contracted with the Massillon Bridge Company of Massillon, Ohio, for $2,090, to fabricate and erect the steel bridge. In operation from 1869 to the 1930s, the firm was a leading producer of metal truss highway bridges throughout the lower Great Lakes region. The McKeown Road Bridge is the last metal truss highway bridge in Barry County.