General Dean Suspension Bridge
CITY:
Carlyle
COUNTY:
Clinton
DEDICATED BY:
Carlyle Junior Woman’s Club and The Illinois State Historical Society
DEDICATION DATE:
January 1, 1976 at 6:00:00 AM
The marker is located on the west end of the General Dean Suspension Bridge, which crosses the Kaskaskia River, at the foot of Fairfax Avenue, directly below the Carlyle Lake Dam. There are public access areas on both sides of the river, just east of the
This bridge was built in 1859 at a cost of $40,000 and used for nearly seventy years. Previously, travelers at Carlyle crossed the Kaskaskia by ferry or on a mud bridge supported by logs. The Historic American Buildings Survey recognized the architectural significance of this bridge in 1950 and recommended its preservation. In 1951 the State Legislature appropriated $20,000 for restoration work. The bridge was named in honor of Major General William F. Dean, a Korean War hero and Carlyle native, in 1953. As of 1976 this was the only suspension bridge in Illinois.