Historic Bridge Park
Historic Bridge Park, located a bit southeast of Battle Creek in Calhoun County, Michigan, is a unique park whose focus is on the historic truss bridges that have been moved to and restored within the park. The park allows truss bridges that have become insufficient for their original location to be preserved for their historic and aesthetic value. Historic Bridge Park is the first of its kind in the entire United States. In addition to providing the historic bridges for the enjoyment of visitors, Historic Bridge Park is a fully functional park, with bathroom facilities, picnic areas, and paved trails for the enjoyment of pedestrians, bicyclists, etc. Entry into the park is free of charge, and the park is open year-round from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM. During the Christmas season, the bridges themselves are lit up, offering a unique Christmas light display. If you are new to the world of metal truss bridges, you might find viewing my Introduction to Truss Bridges presentation to be helpful.
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There are currently a number of bridges at the park available for the public to view and experience. More bridges will continue to be added over future years until a total of fifteen bridges reside in the park. All bridges are open to non-motorized traffic. All bridges in the park have their own Bridge Browser page on my website, complete with historical information and numerous photos of the bridges. Click the link below to access a list of bridges in the park and access the pages
I have two maps available. One is of the area surrounding the park, which can aid in actually getting to the park. The other is more a map of the park itself which I created. It includes a key to the bridges in the park. Click on the thumbnails below to view the map.
From I-94, going either direction, take Exit 104 which is 11 Mile Road. Turn left from the off ramp to proceed south on 11 Mile Road. Turn right onto F Drive North. Turn left onto Wattles Road and left again at the Historic Bridge Park sign.
In addition to housing the fascinating historic bridges, Historic Bridge Park also has resources found in normal parks. A boat launch is available to access the Kalamazoo River. A picnic and play area is present along the Kalamazoo River as well. New restroom facilities have been installed in the park. The North Country Trail passes through the park. The hard-surfaced path that connects the bridges in the park is open to all non-motorized forms of traffic, such as walking, biking etc.
I have prepared a guide that you can print out and take with you on your visit to Historic Bridge Park. It includes brief information about each bridge in the park, as well as a map of the park area and directions to get there.
The guide has had page breaks inserted so that if you decide to print the guide it will print out in a nice orderly fashion and not cut paragraphs in half. This should work with most newer browsers. The guide is five pages total to print.
Historic Bridge Park: Visitor's Guide
From roughly Thanksgiving through New Years, the bridge park has an an attractive light display where the truss bridges have lights strung on their members and chords to create a fun and interesting experience.
Make an evening trip to Historic Bridge park during this time and you will be in for a treat. I have a gallery of night photos I got from my experience. Some of the photos were taken to try to show it as it was, others I messed around with shutter speeds and such to create interesting effects. I have two galleries available, one consists of standard 640x480 images, the other has the same images but they are Full/Wallpaper sized images. The full gallery photos have more detail and will make good desktop backgrounds, but will take longer to download if you have a slow connection.
Bridge enthusiasts and people with an interest in old iron and steel riveting techniques will be fascinated by this special event which is sponsored by the Calhoun County Road Commission. During this demonstration, you will get an opportunity to witness firsthand the process of riveting, just the way it was done back when truss bridges were being built. Also demonstrated will be blacksmithing and forge welding which were also key to creating the eye-bars present on many truss bridges. Heating and straightening will also be demonstrated.
The demonstration takes place at Historic Bridge Park every year on the last Saturday of June, from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. The event is open to the public, and food and music will be provided.
Below is the official page for Historic Bridge Park as well as the official page for the Living History Demonstration. They are a part of the Calhoun County Community Development, which is a conglomeration of such aspects of Calhoun County Government as the road commission, parks and recreation, and public works.
Official Historic Bridge Park Website
Official Living History Demonstration Website
