Steel remnants of the former Franklin Street Bridge between Peoria and East Peoria, Illinois, now make up a unique sculpture along the banks of the Illinois River. The monument stands near the spot where the steel truss and bascule (drawbridge) structure spanned the river for eight decades. The Franklin Street Bridge was built in 1911, after an earlier concrete span collapsed into the river soon after it was opened. Engineers said the structure failed when the concrete piers were undermined and weakened. By incorporating a 30-degree curve into the design,…
