Historic Bridges


A brief history of Wisconsin's bridges

Wisconsin's bridge history began with the construction of wood and stone bridges and slowly evolved from metal truss design to our current concrete and steel structures. As transportation needs changed and safety standards improved, many of these historic bridges have been removed from service.

Those remaining historic structures fall into three categories — Stone-and-Concrete-Arch, Metal Truss and Movable.


Relocation of historic bridges

During some bridge replacement projects, the project team may list the bridge for relocation if:

  • it has been identified as a "historic" structure, and
  • the project uses federal funding and is completed or sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT).

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