The Sparkman Street Bridge was built from 1907 to 1909, connecting East Nashville to downtown. Howard M. Jones was the lead engineer while Foster-Creighton Company and Gould Contracting of Louisville led construction. The structure was an engineering achievement, featuring the first use of reinforced concrete trusses in the United States. This method supported the weight of streetcar traffic and later held the weight of rush hour traffic throughout the twentieth century. The bridge closed to road traffic in the 1990s, later reopening as a pedestrian bridge with excellent views of the river and downtown. Called Shelby Street Bridge after the street name changed from Sparkman, the bridge was later renamed the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge in 2014 in honor of Nashville journalist John Seigenthaler (1927-2014). It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge
36.1621, -86.7721
Description
The Sparkman Street Bridge was built from 1907 to 1909, connecting East Nashville to downtown. Howard M. Jones was the lead engineer while Foster-Creighton Company and Gould Contracting of Louisville led construction. The structure was an engineering achievement, featuring the first use of reinforced concrete trusses in the United States. This method supported the weight of streetcar traffic and later held the weight of rush hour traffic throughout the twentieth century. The bridge closed to road traffic in the 1990s, later reopening as a pedestrian bridge with excellent views of the river and downtown. Called Shelby Street Bridge after the street name changed from Sparkman, the bridge was later renamed the John Seigenthaler Pedestrian Bridge in 2014 in honor of Nashville journalist John Seigenthaler (1927-2014). It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.