Chester Bridge

The Chester Bridge is a continuous truss bridge connecting Missouri's Route 51 with Illinois Route 150 across the Mississippi River between Perryville, Missouri and Chester, Illinois. It is one of two motor-traffic bridges spanning the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cape Girardeau, Missouri.HistoryLocated at river mile marker 109.5, the Chester Bridge is a two-lane traffic truss bridge which was constructed by Sverdrup and Parcel and Associates, Inc. of St. Louis, Missouri. Construction began in 1941 and was finished in 1942 at a cost of $1,385,000 (1942 dollars). The bridge opened on August 23, 1942 and operated as a toll bridge until January 1, 1989. The main span was destroyed by a severe tornadic force thunderstorm on July 29, 1944, and reconstructed 2 years later. The bridge serves about 6,400 vehicles per day.Chester Welcome CenterThe Chester Welcome Center is located in Segar Park next to the Chester Bridge and overlooks the Mississippi River. The park was dedicated to E. C. Segar who was born on December 8, 1894, in Chester, Illinois. Segar is most noted for his cartoon comic "Popeye” which he created in 1929 from his recollections of a local scrapper on the Mississippi River. A six-foot “life-size” bronze statue of Popeye stands near the bridge.