Property Record
Water Street/Beaver Creek
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Water Street Bridge |
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| Other Name: | Water Street Bridge |
| Contributing: | No |
| Reference Number: | 27971 |
| Location (Address): | Water Street/Beaver Creek |
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| County: | Monroe |
| City: | Sparta |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
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| Year Built: | 1943 |
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| Additions: | |
| Survey Date: | 1989 |
| Historic Use: | bridge |
| Architectural Style: | NA (unknown or not a building) |
| Structural System: | Steel Frame |
| Wall Material: | Metal |
| Architect: | |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Water Street Commercial Historic District |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 11/12/1992 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 7/3/1992 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | As early as 1875, a bridge crossed Beaver Creek at this location. The present bridge was constructed after the 1943 Beaver Creek flood. In that year, the Army Corps of Engineers removed the previous bridge. Because of this property's recent construction, it does not meet the criteria for historical significance and does not fall into the exception criteria for properties constructed during the 50 year non-historic period. Located on Water Street, this metal, one-span bridge features iron beams across Beaver Creek that rest on massive concrete piers. The piers also function as retaining walls/wing dams for the small watertway. A metal balustrade supported by metal posts borders the walkway on the east side of the bridge. The Water Stree Bridge was constructed by the Pertzch Construction Company beginning in late 1943 and early 1944 after the disastrous flood occurring in that year demolished the previous concrete bridge built after the flood in the early 1900s. Army personnel from nearby Fort McCoy assisted with the clean-up and the preparation of the site. The feed mill located over the river bed along with the earlier bridge and several buildings located north and south of the creek channel on the east side of North Water Street were removed in the summer and fall of 1943. The span of the new Water Street bridge was increased to 70 feet to correlate with the widening of the Beaver Creek channel as required in the flood plan instituted after the 1943 flood. The Water Street Bridge does not meet the criteria of the NRHP for architectural significance because it is less than 50 years old. As a result, this bridge does not contribute to the historic character of the proposed Water Street Commercial Historic District. steel beam or plate girder bridge |
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| Bibliographic References: | (A) Sparta Herald May 31, 1943; Aug. 30, 1943; Oct. 4, 1943; Nov. 15, 1943; Nov. 22, 1943; Nov. 29, 1943; "A Centennial Portfolio: 1883-1983," June 6, 1983. (B) Sanborn Insurance Maps 1889, 1894, 1900, 1911, 1922, 1931. (C) Richards, Ed., History of Monroe County, Wisconsin, (Chicago: C.F. Cooper & Co., 1912), pp. 280, 283. (D) Map of Sparta (compiled by the Phoenix Map Company, Milwaukee), 1875. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |