Teens Run Bridge

Teens Run Bridge. . , The bridge carrying State Route 7 over Teens Run in Eureka, Ohio was constructed in 1938. The Teens Run Bridge was determined eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) in 2012. The bridge is eligible for its technical distinction specifically, as an example of a state highway department bridge featuring the early adaptation of integral technology to a continuous concrete slab bridge prior to standardization. The primary attribute of an integral bridge is the lack of movable joints in or between the deck and the flexible end supports. , With the goal to eliminate the intermediate deck expansion joints for all multiple span structures, the Ohio Department of Highways Bureau of Bridges had to adapt to the complex analysis and design of these structures as well as employ some technical innovations. The use of more secure foundations to minimize settlement of supports and the employment of flexible integral abutments, has given the Teens Run Bridge the distinction of being the longest and the primary prototype for thousands of similar bridges that were to follow. , This design innovation has its beginning with the appointment of Joseph R. Burkey. He was appointed the Engineer of Bridges for the Ohio Department of Highways in 1925. Mr. Burkey joined the Bureau of Bridges in 1911, and had a long and distinguished career, culminating with his term as chief of the bureau from 1925 to 1939. Under his direction, Ohio became the first state to adopt the routine use of continuous construction for all multiple span bridges. , , The Teens Run Bridge was designed and checked respectively by Virgil A. Eberly and Josephine E. Powers, a pioneering female architect. Plans for the bridge were reviewed by both William S. Hindman, the primary reviewer, and William H. Rebe, the bureau's chief design engineer.