The Superior Express -

Burr Oak, my hometown, is unusual in having two main road bridges with creeks running under them, within the town’s city limits. Since the town was founded where the Burr Oak Creek joins the White Rock Creek, there had to be bridges on the north side and west edge of town.

The first iron clad bridges were used for many years. My family crossed the bridge on Highway 28 on the north side of town to visit my grandparents. It would rattle every time it was crossed. Next to the bridge, in a low place, was the Huntsinger filling station. The tall iron beams of the bridge amazed me as a youngster. They ran so far overhead. After a flood in the 1950s, the bridge was replaced with a modern concrete one. Workers took a long time to complete the new bridge.

My best memories of that bridge came while attending school in the Burr Oak Junior -Senior High School building, a block south of the bridge. The high school students had a free noon period and some of us would walk up to the bridge and hang out for a while. Some would sit upon the concrete sides of the bridge and look down into the White Rock Creek. The creek then seemed so much bigger than it does today.

With my parents and we girls living on a farm north of town, coming into Burr Oak and other destinations southward meant crossing the bridge. Within the past several months, that bridge has been replaced with a new concrete and tuff iron beamed bridge. Thankfully it’s in the same spot the older bridge was, with the now Highway 128 over it.

The old iron clad bridge serving the road west out of town, also held many memories for me and others who attended school in Burr Oak. My aunts told me when the high school building was on the west edge of Burr Oak near the football field, students had to walk back and forth over the bridge and on east to the lunch room building that was located near the limestone grade school building. Then it was back across the bridge to the high school building after lunch. They also told of walking from the high school, west of town, across the bridge and on north to get to the Forum building where basketball practice and basketball games, plus other school activities were held.

When I came to junior high and high school at Burr Oak, the iron bridge was still there, though the west high school was no longer there. But the football field remained, so students had to walk from the new school building on the north side of town, along the highway and main street of town. Students then walked to football practice and football games, and other activities at the field. It was a thrill to walk onto the bridge, hang onto the side bars and look down into the flowing creek water. Sometimes the creek water was so high it almost touched the bridge floor.

My parents first farmed northwest of Burr Oak. Mother said I was almost two years old, when she loaded me up into their car and, headed to town. Back then seat belts were unheard of. The only protection then and years later when my sons were little, was mother or father stretching an arm out suddenly, across the child’s chest when called for. Mother and I headed to Burr Oak to get some groceries in early July. It had rained a lot that day. As we approached the creek, on the wet and slick roadway, she lost control of the car and it headed down the high creek bank before coming to a jerking stop. Despite Mother’s efforts to protect me, my forehead hit the windshield of the car. Someone came along and helped get us out of the car. We were taken to Dr. Poppen’s office. He was the town doctor at that time. Mother never told me if she was hurt, she said my injury turned out to be a cut and a large bump on my forehead. To this day, the faint scar can still be seen as a reminder.

I’m sure these two major road bridges in Burr Oak saw a lot of travelers over them through the years, as the population in town and on neighboring farms was larger years ago. Many traveled across the bridges to do their trading in Burr Oak, trucked and trailered grain into the elevator, buses brought students in and out of town. Eventually the iron clad bridge on the west side of Burr Oak was replaced with a newer concrete bridge though I’m not sure when it was constructed.