James Barney Marsh
James Barney Marsh was an engineer and bridge designer born in North Lake, Wisconsin.Biography
He was a graduate of Iowa State College of Agriculture and Mechanical Arts in Ames.
He is known for reinforced concrete arch bridges, for which he held a 1911 United States patent. An example is the Cotter Bridge in Arkansas. The Big Creek Bridge in Oregon is similar in design. Several of these bridges remain and are listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Hundreds of Marsh "Rainbow" bridges were constructed in the 1910s, 1920s and 1930s because of their popular design and appearance.
Marsh is buried in Glendale Cemetery, Des Moines, Polk County, Iowa with members of his family.Works
Notable works include:Iowa
- Beaver Creek Bridge, M Avenue over Beaver Creek, Perry, NRHP-listed
- Beaver Creek Bridge, 210th Street over Beaver Creek, Ogden, NRHP-listed
- Big Creek Bridge 2, 2130 320th Street over Big Creek, Madrid, NRHP-listed
- Court Avenue Bridge, Court Avenue over Des Moines River, Des Moines, NRHP-listed
- Des Moines River Bridge, CR P14 over East Fork of Des Moines River, Swea City, NRHP-listed
- Marsh Rainbow Arch Bridge, Highway N37 over North Raccoon River, Lake City, NRHP-listed
- Rockwell City Bridge, 270th Street over unnamed stream, Rockwell City, NRHP-listed
- Squaw Creek Bridge, 120th Street and V Avenue over Squaw Creek, Ridgeport, NRHP-listed
- Squaw Creek Bridge 2, 110th Street and V Avenue over Squaw Creek, Ridgeport, NRHP-listed
Kansas
- Blacksmith Creek Bridge, west of Topeka, NRHP-listed
- Brush Creek Bridge, north of Baxter Springs, NRHP-listed
- Cedar Creek Bridge, FAS 96, Elgin, NRHP-listed
- Conroe Bridge, east of Junction City, NRHP-listed
- Creamery Bridge, FAS 456, Osawatomie, NRHP-listed
- Dewlen-Spohnhauer Bridge, Old US 160, Independence, NRHP-listed
- Mack, John, Bridge, South Broadway across the Big Arkansas River, Wichita, NRHP-listed
- Mine Creek Bridge, east of Mound City, NRHP-listed
- Neosho River Bridge, east of Hartford, NRHP-listed
- Pottawatomie Creek Bridge, FAS 1604, Osawatomie, NRHP-listed
- Soden's Grove Bridge, K-57/99, Emporia, NRHP-listed
Elsewhere
- Bladensburg Concrete Bowstring Bridge, SR 541 over Wakatomika Creek, Bladensburg, Ohio, documented by HAER
- Marsh Rainbow Arch Bridge, Spring Street, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, NRHP-listed
- Miller Ree Creek Bridge, west edge of Miller, South Dakota, NRHP-listed
