ST. LOUIS roadmeet
Mar. 15-16 2014
PART 4
East on O'Fallon Street approaching Lewis Street. This was the best moment of our entire tour!
North on Lewis. The street trails off into a narrow affair straight ahead. Also, the Stan Musial Bridge is again seen in the background.
West on O'Fallon from Lewis.
South on 2nd from O'Fallon.
This giant beverage bottle was visible from across I-44.
North on Broadway at the split.
East on Cass Avenue at the ramp to the Stan Musial. You can see where the street goes over I-44.
Looking south from I-70's Stan Musial Bridge in historic Brooklyn, Ill. (also known as Lovejoy, after abolitionist Elijah Lovejoy). There appears to be a grain mill and a minor road or trail here.
Southwest from Fairmont City into East St. Louis, Ill., on a brand new road that goes over the new part of I-70. A connector down to IL 3 is on the right. It appears as if they plan to extend the new road straight ahead. The bridge barely visible in the background at left is probably the MacArthur Bridge.
Northwest from Fairmont City into Brooklyn on IL 3, going under the Stan Musial. This area used to be a separate municipality called National City. National City was a company town owned by the St. Louis National Stockyards Company as late as 1996, when all its residents (including the mayor) were unfairly evicted. The company evicted the townsfolk in retaliation for the town board approving an adult bookstore and nude nightclub. The town was later annexed by Fairmont City because it had no remaining residents.
IL 3 in Brooklyn.
IL 3 goes under a rail bridge in Venice, Ill.
Kerr Street in Venice.
Some vacant space at 4th & Granville in Venice. IL 3 uses 4th Street here.
West on Granville at 3rd.
West on Kerr. The bridge in the background is the McKinley Bridge, which runs to St. Louis. That 6,313-foot-long span opened in 1910, closed in 2001, and reopened in 2007. It once had rail too. It even once carried US 66.
West on Ashbrook Street, we get a better view of the McKinley Bridge.
North on 2nd - still in Venice, Ill.!
West on Kerr, with a better view of the McKinley Bridge.
Some embossed signy goodness! This ancient, rusted weight limit sign was on Granville Street in Venice. What bridge does the sign refer to? No map or aerial photo going back for many decades shows any bridge on this street.
Still in Venice, and IL 3 curves to the west and goes under this rail bridge. This brief stretch of IL 3 was built in the 1970s or 1980s.
North on IL 3 in Venice, going under another rail span, which leads to the Merchants Bridge. It's hard to see here, but the rail line in the previous photo is just to the right of IL 3 here.
West on Chain of Rocks Road at IL 3 in Granite City, Ill. The bridge in the background is the I-270 span over the Chain of Rocks Canal.
West on Chain of Rocks Road - which has been US 66, Byp US 40, and Byp US 66 at various times. Up ahead, we cross a bridge over the canal.