CARTHAGE – Traffic is now flowing freely on a long-time defunct bridge in Smith County.
State and local officials held a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, July 9, to re-open the Cordell Hull Bridge over the Cumberland River in Carthage. The event marked the end of a long repair project, which began in August 2011 when Mid-State Construction was awarded a contract to rehabilitate the truss-style bridge.
The bridge has been closed to traffic since December 2007, after a routine examination by Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) bridge inspectors found significant deterioration in the bridge’s steel truss, spans and connections.
The $9.5 million project included removal and replacement of the concrete bridge deck in all truss spans, replacement of the bridge rails for the full length of the bridge, and various structural steel repairs and bearing replacements. Concrete repairs were also made to the bridge piers.
Much of the original structure was preserved through blast cleaning and repainting, including the overhead truss, lattice work and countless rivets.
The Cordell Hull Bridge, which originally opened to traffic in 1936, was named for former U.S. Secretary of State Cordell Hull, who once lived in Carthage.
