TANEY COUNTY - The historic U.S. Route 160 Kissee Mills Park Bridge over Beaver Creek in Taney County northeast of Branson, Missouri, is available for relocation and reuse by others. Any interested party is encouraged to submit a proposal by March 26, 2026, to the Missouri Department of Transportation’s Historic Preservation Section to obtain the structure.
Slated for an upcoming improvement project, this bridge can be obtained by government entities, historical or civic groups, or private citizens, free of charge. Details about the bridge can be viewed online at www.modot.org/freebridges. Anyone interested in obtaining a historic bridge must submit a detailed proposal describing the dismantling and relocation plan, cost, and future use. A proposal checklist is available online. The cost to remove the bridge, or any of its parts, is borne by the party obtaining the bridge.
- The Kissee Mills Park Bridge northeast of Branson is a 1953 riveted, 8-Panel Camelback Through Truss bridge with a total length of 461 feet 8 inches and a width of 22 feet.
- During the design layout in September 1951, the bridge configuration was finalized. The bridge would consist of a 180’ through truss with I-beam approach spans, a 22’ roadway and a channel handrail.
- On April 6, 1953 bids were received for the relocation and adjustment of Route SD(125) at Proten and Route SC(80) at Kissee Mills in Taney County, as well as providing an access road to Kissee Mills, all necessitated by the impoundment of the Bull Shoals Reservoir. The low bidder for all three projects advertised was the Forum-James Company of Dyersburg, Tennessee. Project SC(80) 1-A involved constructing bridges L0382 and L0441, the bid for that project was $297,094.37 in contract price, $23,817.97 in engineering costs, and $339.00 in non-contractual costs. The Illinois Steel Bridge Company fabricated the truss.
- The bridge was completed on July 26, 1954.
- The bridge was determined eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places during consultation for the Bull Shoals Lake Bridges Programmatic Agreement, executed November 12, 2014, and extended June 2024. Bridge L0382 is eligible under Criterion A for its association with the creation of Bull Shoals Lake and Dam and because it is an example of a Missouri State Highway Department through truss bridge.
For more information about the bridge, please contact MoDOT’s Historic Preservation Section at (573) 526-4778, via email at co_historic_preservation@modot.mo.gov, or visit www.modot.org/freebridges.
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For more information, call MoDOT in Springfield at 417-895-7600 or visit www.modot.org/southwest
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