As home to the greatest working drawbridge museum, Chicago boasts more different moveable bridge designs than any city on earth, and the most drawbridges of any city in North America.

On Friday, December 13, the Grand Avenue Bridge will be 100 years old.

The bridge originally opened on Saturday, December 13, 1913, over the north branch of the Chicago River, at what was then called Indiana Avenue – one block north of Illinois Street. The street was renamed that year, from the lake to the river, and on July 23 of the following year the entire street became Grand Avenue. This occurred as a result of two ordinances in 1913 that changed more than 500 street names. The new bridge replaced a wood and iron swing bridge that was built in 1869 and was the first bridge at this location.

(Left) Grand Avenue Bridge on April 9, 1914, photographed by Copelin Commercial Photographers, looking east. Image obtained from University of Illinois at Chicago via historicbridges.org.

At the time, the Grand Avenue and Erie Street Bridges provided important connections for daily commuters between the Near North and west sides of the city. Proposals for widening or replacing the Grand Avenue Bridge were contemplated in the 1920s, 1940s, and 1960s but never got past the planning stages. However, with the development of the Ohio Avenue feeder ramp and bascule bridge in 1961, connecting with the new Northwest Expressway (now known as the Kennedy Expressway), traffic diminished significantly on the Grand Avenue and Erie Street Bridges. In 1971, the then-61-year-old Erie Street Bridge, in need of complete rehabilitation, was removed and not replaced. Today the Grand Avenue Bridge now carries mostly local traffic and with the addition of designated bike lanes in 2012, is a well-used connection for bicyclists.

Grand Avenue is not the first 100-year-old bridge in Chicago. The Washington Street Bridge recently celebrated its 100th birthday on May 26, 2013.

There are five other bridges under the city’s care that are more than 100 years old, including the Chicago-type bascule bridge at Kinzie Street, built in 1909.

Seven railroad bridges that cross the Chicago River are older than 100 years, including the Z-2 bobtail swing bridge at Cherry Street, built in 1902, and the Z-6 eccentric bobtail swing bridge one block south of Courtland Street, built in 1899 by the Chicago & North Western Railroad.

Patrick McBriarty is the author of Chicago River Bridges, published in October by University of Illinois Press, a coffee table history and companion book to the documentary Chicago Drawbridges, which was broadcast several times this year on Chicago Public Television. McBriarty co-produced the one-hour program with Chicago filmmaker Stephen Hatch.

 More info: Chicago River Bridges