Pecos River High Bridge
Encyclopedia
The Pecos River High Bridge carries the Southern Pacific Railroad
across the Pecos River
gorge and is the second high-level crossing on this site. The first, designed by SP chief engineer Julius Kruttschnitt
, was built by the Phoenix Bridge Company and completed in 1892. It remained in place until 1949, five years after its replacement was completed.
The current Pecos River High Bridge is a steel
deck truss bridge on slip-formed
concrete
piers, ranging in height up to 275 feet (83.8 m). It was designed by Modjeski and Masters
of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
, with foundations constructed by Brown and Root of Houston and trusses fabricated by Bethlehem Steel Company of Chicago. Because of material rationing
during World War II, War Production Board
approval was required before proceeding with fabrication.
Southern Pacific Railroad
The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....
across the Pecos River
Pecos River
The headwaters of the Pecos River are located north of Pecos, New Mexico, United States, at an elevation of over 12,000 feet on the western slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County. The river flows for through the eastern portion of that state and neighboring Texas before it...
gorge and is the second high-level crossing on this site. The first, designed by SP chief engineer Julius Kruttschnitt
Julius Kruttschnitt
Julius Kruttschnitt was a German American railroad executive. The son of the German consul in New Orleans, he graduated from Washington and Lee University in 1873 and worked briefly as a schoolteacher before beginning his railroad career...
, was built by the Phoenix Bridge Company and completed in 1892. It remained in place until 1949, five years after its replacement was completed.
The current Pecos River High Bridge is a steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
deck truss bridge on slip-formed
Slip forming
This article is about pouring concrete in moving forms. See Slipform stonemasonry for another type of slip forming.Slip forming, continuous poured, continuously formed, or slipform construction is a construction method in which concrete is poured into a continuously moving form...
concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
piers, ranging in height up to 275 feet (83.8 m). It was designed by Modjeski and Masters
Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski was a Polish-born American civil engineer who achieved prominence as a pre-eminent bridge designer in the United States.-Life:...
of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 49,528, making it the ninth largest city in Pennsylvania...
, with foundations constructed by Brown and Root of Houston and trusses fabricated by Bethlehem Steel Company of Chicago. Because of material rationing
Rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services. Rationing controls the size of the ration, one's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.- In economics :...
during World War II, War Production Board
War Production Board
The War Production Board was established as a government agency on January 16, 1942 by executive order of Franklin D. Roosevelt.The purpose of the board was to regulate the production and allocation of materials and fuel during World War II in the United States...
approval was required before proceeding with fabrication.