Brazoria Bridges

 bridge  Add category

 Upload a photo

This image shows two bridges crossing the Brazos River, a highway bridge (left) and a railroad bridge (right).

The highway bridge, known as the "Brazoria Bridge," was constructed in 1939, and it's still in use today to carry Texas State Highways SH332 and FM521 across the river. This bridge is a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, and it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Photo: www.city-data.com/cpicv/vfiles4546.jpg
Texas Landmark Register: tinyurl.com/onbpx
National Register: tinyurl.com/mphf4

The Texas Department of Transportation plans to construct a new four-lane highway bridge, located between the two existing bridges, for SH332 and FM521. The existing highway bridge will remain standing to provide access to the picnic area and park east of river.

The railroad bridge was originally built ca 1907 by the St. Louis, Brownsville, and Mexico Railway Company. It's a center-pivot swinging bridge, theoretically capable of pivoting to allow river traffic to pass, although it has not been opened for several years.

The St.L.B.& M.R.W. merged with the Missouri Pacific Railway Company in 1956, which in turn merged with the Union Pacific in 1997. The railroad operates today as the Union Pacific, which still uses the bridge for revenue traffic. Two or three dozen trains a day pass across it, most of which are drawn by UPRR locomotives, although BNSF and KSC locomotives are sometimes seen.