{"nrhp_refnum":"78002043","name":"Superior Avenue Viaduct","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Superior Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cleveland","county":"Cuyahoga County","state":"OH","lat":41.494637709000074,"lon":-81.70427925799999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1978-06-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Engineering","Transportation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A surviving section of the Superior Avenue (Superior Street) Viaduct in Cleveland, Ohio, built 1875-1878 as a Berea sandstone arch viaduct on the west bank of the Cuyahoga River. The remaining portion is about 580 feet long and owned by the City of Cleveland.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it was one of the largest engineering projects in America when built. It was also an important symbolic link between Cleveland's east and west sides. Its cantilever swing bridge was the first major one in Cleveland, and the viaduct was the first major transportation and commerce structure to join the two sides of the city.","narrative":"Rising above the west bank of the Cuyahoga Valley in Cleveland, this sandstone arch viaduct was built between 1875 and 1878 to carry pedestrians, vehicles and streetcars across the river valley and to remove dangerous railroad crossings at street level. The original structure ran 3,211 feet and included ten Berea sandstone arches, a 322-foot cantilever swing bridge over the river, and a plate-girder approach on the east. City engineers E. W. Ensign and B. F. Morse designed it. It was among the largest engineering projects in the country at the time and was the first major structure to join Cleveland's east and west sides. The Detroit-Superior Bridge replaced its function, and in 1922 most of it was demolished. About 580 feet survives, including eight stone arches, with the eastern half barricaded. Local supporters have proposed turning the remnant into an urban park.","period_of_significance":"1875-1878; 1922","architect_builder":"E. W. Ensign & B. F. Morse","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Most of the viaduct was demolished in 1922. About 580 feet remains, including eight stone arches. The eastern half is low-barricaded and the western part is resurfaced for vehicle access to small commercial sites. Present use is listed as vacant.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:09.92985-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/78002043.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002043/7c7114707b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/78002043/7c7114707b-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"THD3","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Superior_Viaduct.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">THD3</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Superior_Viaduct.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71987578","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q122227107"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/cuyahoga-county/superior-avenue-viaduct-78002043/"}