{"nrhp_refnum":"81000212","name":"Blakeman Bridge","other_names":["Bridge Number 3133"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"SE of Charleston","address_restricted":false,"city":"Charleston","county":"Coles County","state":"IL","lat":39.44960491100005,"lon":-88.15020082599995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1981-11-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Blakeman Bridge is a triple-arch, earth-filled, steel-reinforced concrete bridge over the Embarras River southeast of Charleston, Coles County, Illinois. It was built in 1907 by the Mercantile Bridge Company of Paris, Illinois.","why_significant":"It is one of only four earth-filled, steel-reinforced concrete arch bridges in the 12-county IDOT District 5. It represents the era of experimentation with reinforced concrete construction and sits at one of the oldest river crossings and the site of the county's first settlement and mill.","narrative":"Blakeman Bridge carries a road across the Embarras River southeast of Charleston, Illinois. Built in 1907 by the Mercantile Bridge Company of Paris, Illinois, it is a triple-arch bridge of earth-filled, steel-reinforced concrete, 257 feet long with an 18-foot-6-inch roadway. It replaced an earlier iron through-truss. The crossing is one of the oldest in Coles County and lies at the site of the county's first settlement, where Benjamin Parker started a mill in the 1830s and Eben Blakeman later ran a saw and grist mill. The bridge is one of only four earth-filled, steel-reinforced concrete arch bridges in the twelve-county IDOT District 5. It reflects a period when builders were still experimenting with metal reinforcement, at a time when plain, heavy Roman-style concrete bridges were more common. Repairs in 1980 added a concrete surface and steel rods to stabilize the spandrel walls.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Mercantile Bridge Company, Paris, Illinois","architectural_style":"Triple arch, concrete, earth-filled","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Repaired in 1980 with a new precast concrete surface, reinforcing rods and repaired railings; used as a detour during Route 130 bridge replacement, with a recommended load limit of 27 tons.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.592323-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/97/8907/28890797/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/81000212.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000212/08f94a5918-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000212/08f94a5918-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blakeman_Bridge.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Blakeman_Bridge.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28890797","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blakeman_Bridge","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15637969"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/coles-county/blakeman-bridge-81000212/"}