Cherry Avenue Bridge, Railway bridge in Near North Side, Chicago, US
Cherry Avenue Bridge is a railway crossing that spans the North Branch of the Chicago River in Chicago's Near North Side. It was built with steel and concrete using an asymmetrical design where one side is notably shorter than the other.
Wisconsin Bridge & Iron Company built this crossing in 1902 for the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad to link industrial areas of the city. It remained in railroad use before later serving pedestrians and bicycles.
The bridge's name comes from Cherry Street, which once ran nearby before the neighborhood changed over time. Today, pedestrians walking across notice the industrial style and the view of the river below, reminding them of Chicago's working past.
The bridge sits just south of North Avenue and is easy to reach on foot from nearby streets. You can cross it on foot or by bicycle and get a clear view of the river from the span.
The bridge is a swing type using a concrete weight on its shorter section to balance and lift, a feature shared by only one other similar bridge left in the city. This system was simpler to operate than other swing designs while still allowing river traffic to pass underneath.
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