Seville Bridge
Why it's listed
Near the vanished railroad town of Seville in Harris Township, Fulton County, Illinois, a single-span Parker through truss bridge dating to about 1880 carries the old main road between Seville and Smithfield. Built of steel and iron with pinned connections, it rests on stone abutments, has a wooden deck, and gained concrete approaches in 1917. Its bottom chord is about 179 feet long and its height is roughly 19 feet. The bridge is now described as closed. Seville began as a railroad town and no longer exists, which makes the crossing a surviving link to that settlement. The bridge was listed as one of a thematic group of metal highway bridges in Fulton County, built between about 1883 and 1915. Together they show how the county's roads improved as iron and steel trusses replaced fords and ferries, and how truss design changed over about 35 years, especially in the Pratt and Parker types.
Significance in brief: The bridge is part of a thematic group of metal highway bridges in Fulton County built between about 1883 and 1915. The group shows how the county's road system improved as iron and steel truss bridges replaced fords and ferries, and it records changes in truss design, including Pratt and Parker through trusses. This bridge was built as the main road from Seville to Smithfield.
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 80001359, 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 in Seville, Seville |
|---|---|
| County | Fulton County |
| Listed | October 29, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80001359 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Architectural style | Parker through truss |
| Areas of significance | Engineering, Transportation |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Described as a closed bridge; the thematic group is noted as generally in good condition. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.48566, -90.34293 (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 80001359.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7458060
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.