Shawneetown Bridge Explained

Bridge Name:Shawneetown Bridge
Official Name:Earle C. Clements Bridge
Crosses:Ohio River
Locale:Old Shawneetown, Illinois and Union County, Kentucky
Maint:Kentucky Transportation Cabinet
Design:Cantilevered truss bridge
Mainspan:825.1feet
Length:3200.2feet
Width:23.9feet
Clearance:19feet
Traffic:2,800
Open:1955
Coordinates:37.6911°N -88.1314°W

The Earle C. Clements Bridge, commonly known as the Shawneetown Bridge, is a cantilever truss bridge carrying Kentucky Route 56 and Illinois Route 13 across the Ohio River. Clements was governor of Kentucky in 1947–50 and U.S. senator in 1950–56. The bridge connects Old Shawneetown, Illinois, to rural Union County, Kentucky, where Clements was born, raised and held local office. Opened in 1955, it is the only highway bridge over the Ohio between Paducah, Kentucky, and Evansville, Indiana. Tolls were removed from the bridge June 30, 1978.[1]

The Shawneetown Bridge was featured in a scene in the film U.S. Marshals. The film's crash scene was filmed several miles downstream in Pope County, Illinois.

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Notes and References

  1. Bill Powell, Louisville Courier-Journal, July 1, 1978