Long Journey for the Bridge Across Tradewater River from Bells
Mines to Sturgis
People
that lived in the northern section of Crittenden County was cut off
from nearby Sturgis in Union County by the Tradewater River. The
community of Bells Mines was much closer to the town of Sturgis than
the 20+ miles to Marion, but no bridge across the Tradewater River
sometimes made it difficult to get to Union County. A small ferry
boat was available most of the time or you found your own means to
cross the span of water. From the articles in the old Crittenden
Presses as early as 1897 the fiscal court knew a bridge was needed in
this area.
As
with many new projects that cause change this one had its problems
and setbacks too. Here is the story of the Kiwanis Bridge with the
idea starting as early as 1897 and finally was finished 29 years
later in 1926.
***
April
8, 1897, At the regular term of the Fiscal court on Tuesday April
4, J. N. Culley (Culley was magistrate for the district of Bells
Mines) and E. L. Nunn were appointed commissioners to report on the
most practicable place to build a bridge across Tradewater; also as
to the kind and probable cost of such a bridge. It was also ordered
that the county judge of Union county be requested to appoint similar
commissioners to act in conjunction with the Crittenden County
commissioners.
Several
years past without any further news or updates of this much needed
bridge. Perhaps Union County wasn't interested just yet.
***
April
6, 1916 – Want a Bridge Across Tradewater
H. L.
Culley, Horace Smith, John Wascomb, Hon. Phil Winston, all of
Sturgis, Ky., F. L. Black, Wm. Brown, Hon. E. L. Nunn of this county,
and others came before the Crittenden County Fiscal Court in the
interest of a bridge across Tradewater at the mouth of Cypress Creek
This
is one of the main county roads and a bridge should be built there at
once to give the people of that section an outlet. Union County will
build a turnpike to the county line at the crossing, so that people
will have a solid rock road to market all the year.
***
August
19, 1920 – The Federal Highway To Be Built
On
last Friday August 13, a few citizens of Sullivan, Union County were
in our city agitating the question as to the location of the Federal
Highway, and the crossing on the Tradewater River.
It has
been our information that former Commissioner Rodman Wiley settled
this question more than a year ago, and why some few of our citizens
will listen and continue to assist a few disgruntle citizens of
another county to rob the citizens and taxpayers of our own county of
the prospect of a road that rightly belongs to them is somewhat a
mystery.
On the
18 day of June 1918, every man who voted for the $150,000 road bond
did it with the specific understanding that the road should cross
Tradewater at or near the mouth of Cypress. Every man who signed
pledges to donate money to augment this sum for road purposes signed
a paper that was explicit in stating that the road should cross
Tradewater at this point. A resolution unanimous adopted by the
Fiscal court, published and put before all the people of the county
designated Cypress for crossing.
We
believe this road should come into this county by crossing Tradewater
at or near the mouth of Cypress, because it was promised the voters
by those in charge of the campaign; because it will benefit directly
all the northern part of the county while the other will not; because
it will connect, directly, almost all of the county with the coal
fields of both this and Union county; because the assessors books
show that the farm lands touched by the Cypress are valued at $30,000
or more. Why a suggestion of another route has been talked about is
a little bit mysterious and one wonders about the motive of the talk.
They
Cypress route serves ten to one more Crittenden County people and
furnishes ingress and egress to a far more extensive and productive
part of the county than the other.
***
June
23, 1922 – Bridge Meeting
Some
forty or more citizens of Morganfield and Sturgis, representing the
Kiwanis Clubs of these cities drove over from Union County Tuesday to
attend the bridge meeting held at the court house here Tuesday.
Owing to the lack of proper advertising only a small number of
Crittenden County people were present at the meeting.
County
Judge E. Jeffrey Travis gave the opening address explaining the
object of the meeting. He told them he wanted the bridge. He said
the people of the two counties were not as closely allied as they
should be. Mayor Kern of Sturgis gave the next address. He advised
co-operation between the two counties and said the building of the
bridge would be the means of more closely uniting the people as
neighbors and friends.
Supt.
Herbert of Bell Coal & Navigation Co. said the citizens of the
northern part of Crittenden deserved and ought to have the bridge.
He said that in the days of Daniel Boone and the Indians when they
wanted to cross Tradewater they crossed in a boat. He told them that
in that respect that part of the county had not improved – they
still had to cross in boats. He said it was not right to force those
people to endanger their future lives by cussing like a blue streak
every time they tried to cross Tradewater and got stuck in the mud.
The
meeting closed with an address by J. F. Dogge in which he said he was
interested in both counties and wanted the bridge so that he could
better make the trips back and forth.
***
June
9, 1922 – Bridge To Be Built Across Tradewater
The
Union County Fiscal Court met in a call session on last Saturday and
voted to build a bridge across Tradewater at the mouth of Cypress, at
the same time voted $12,000 or more if necessary for construction of
same. A date was set for a joint meeting of the Crittenden and Union
County courts to meet at Sturgis to discuss the final plans for the
much needed bridge.
This
bridge has been needed for the convenience of all the northern part
of the county and Judge Travis says he is doing all he can to have it
completed before the year is out. (But not to happen yet for it
seemed several of the fiscal court members were “agin” the whole
thing and a lot of the town people wasn't convinced it was a
worthwhile project to spend money on.)
***
August
10, 1923 – Fiscal Court News
The
Fiscal Court met with Judge E. J Travis and County Attorney E. D.
Stone and all the magistrates being present. The court adjourned to
meet with the Fiscal Court of Union county to confer as to whether
the bridge at the mouth of Cypress built by order of the two counties
would be accepted or rejected.
The
party of officials motored over and consisted of County Judge E. J.
Travis, E. D. Stone, P. R. Taylor, Miss Leaffa Wilborn, L. A. LaRue;
F. M. Davdison, P. F. Paris, S. F. Peek, Charles LaRue, Will
Hardesty, J. L. Rankin, R. L. Holt and Henry Simpson.
***
August
27, 1926 – Tradewater Bridge Now Open To Traffic
The
bridge across Tradewater river, on the Highway between Sturgis and
Marion, was opened to traffic for the first time Saturday of last
week. The structure, one of the largest all concrete foundation
bridges in Kentucky, was finished about July 15th. Messrs.
W. M. and J. S. Quirey, who had the contract to make the fill at each
end of the bridge, completed the work in about thirty days. Between
five and six thousand yards of dirt was moved in order to do this.
Since the Kiwanis Clubs of Union County worked so hard to see this
bridge built it has since been known as the Kiwanis Bridge.
***
The Kiwanis Bridge built in 1926.
***
The old
one-lane Kiwanis Bridge which was so hard fought for, for so many
years, had served it's purpose, and needed replacing many years
later. In 1982 it was replaced with a new two- lane modern concrete
bridge. The new bridge was constructed just downstream from the
location of the old one.
Working on the new bridge that is there today - 1982
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