Buckeye Bridge
Why it's listed
Buckeye Bridge, also called White's Ferry Bridge, carries Township Road 209 over the Spoon River in Cass Township, near Smithfield in Fulton County, Illinois. Built in 1910, it is a single-span steel Parker through truss with pin-connected members. The diagonals and bottom chord are made of double eye bars, and the roadway has a wooden deck. Concrete-faced stone abutments rest on steel caisson piles. The bridge is one of several surviving metal truss bridges over the Spoon River, built between 1883 and 1915, that were grouped into a single thematic listing. Together they show how the county's highway network improved as ferries and older iron bridges were replaced by steel trusses able to handle heavier traffic. The group also illustrates changes in steel bridge construction over about thirty-five years. Reviewers judged the collection regionally significant and noted that the bridges remain largely unaltered and retain their historic integrity.
Significance in brief: It is one of a group of surviving metal truss highway bridges (1883-1915) over the Spoon River in Fulton County, nominated as a thematic collection. The group reflects the improvement of the county's highway system as older ferries and iron bridges gave way to steel trusses. The state-level review described the collection as good examples of late 19th and early 20th century metal truss bridges of regional significance that retain their historic integrity.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 80001361, listed October 29, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Spans Spoon River, Smithfield |
|---|---|
| County | Fulton County |
| Listed | October 29, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80001361 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Architectural style | Parker through truss |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.53186, -90.31125 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 80001361.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4983059
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.