McKee Street Bridge
Why it's listed
McKee Street crosses Buffalo Bayou in Houston on a 290-foot reinforced concrete bridge completed in 1932. Its three spans connect the Fifth Ward and Second Ward areas northeast of downtown. The most distinctive feature is the pair of continuous girders, which rise in wave-like curves over the piers. City bridge engineer J.G. McKenzie shaped them to follow the calculated bending moment curve of the structure. The design solved a difficult site: the street meets the bayou at roughly 77 degrees, and the War Department required 100 feet of horizontal and 42 feet of vertical clearance for small craft. The result was a 120-foot central span. The contract with Don Hall, at $122,000, came in $35,000 below comparable bids for a steel bridge. The deck has a brick wearing surface and steel handrails on cantilevered walkways. It replaced a 1908 steel swing bridge and is described as the only bridge of its kind in Texas. It is still used for traffic and keeps a high degree of integrity.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the bridge was a unique and innovative engineering solution to a difficult site, where the street crosses the bayou at about 77 degrees and navigation clearances were required. Its girders are shaped to match the calculated bending moment curve, allowing a 120-foot main span, and it is described as the only one of its kind in the state. It is listed under Criterion C in engineering at the state level.
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 02000729, listed September 3, 2002. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | McKee St. and Buffalo Bayou, Houston |
|---|---|
| County | Harris County |
| Listed | September 3, 2002 |
| Reference number | 02000729 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1932 |
| Architect / builder | J.G. McKenzie, Engineer; Don Hall Constructor, Inc., Builder |
| Architectural style | Modern Movement: Moderne |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Engineering |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still in use as a vehicular bridge at its original location; only minor changes since construction, including repainting in 1985. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 29.76618, -95.35209 (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 02000729.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q18751479
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.