| Key Facts |
| Bridge Name | Facility Carried / Feature Intersected | Location | Structure Type | Construction Date / Builder or Contractor |
| Market Street Bridge Chief John Ross Bridge |
Market Street (US-27) Over Tennessee River | Chattanooga: Hamilton County, Tennessee | Metal Through Arch, Bascule | 1917 By: Unknown |
| Technical Facts |
| Structure Length | Main Span Length | Roadway Width | Main Spans | Approach Spans | Minimum Vertical Underclearance | Vertical Clearance | Navigation Vertical Clearance |
| 1895 Feet (577.6 Meters) | 358.8 Feet (109.4 Meters) | 36.1 Feet (11 Meters) | 1 | 16 Concrete Deck Arch | 21.6 Feet (6.58 Meters) Over Highway | 16.4 Feet (5 Meters) | 98.4 Feet (30 Meters) |
Thanks to Dave Michaels for visiting and photographing this historic bridge.
This bridge is like a movable monumental bridge, and it is one of the largest bascule bridges ever built. Even when closed, the bridge still offers considerable clearance for boats. The mighty bascule leaves open up to a 45 degree angle. This is not as far as other bascule bridges can open (some can open to near 90 degrees), but given the bridge's high clearance in the closed position, this opening angle was apparantly sufficient. This bridge also is unusual because it is a movable trussed through arch bridge. Most movable bridges feature a truss bridge superstructure or a plate girder superstructure. The bridge also enjoys an incredible amount of local significance as it is the only highway bascule bridge in the entire state, in addition to its high level of national significance for its size and unusual design. Finally, the bridge features impressive a number of large deck arch spans that provide an approach to the structure. This bridge underwent a restoration, and the photos for this bridge were taken while this work was underway. The bridge was closed to all traffic during these rennovations.
