With the St. Louis Cardinals hosting Game 1 of the World Series tonight, those in steel might be interested to learn that the bending of pipes for Busch Stadium was designed to pay tribute to nearby Eads Bridge, the first major bridge utilizing true steel.
Completed in 1874, the Eads Bridge was the longest arch bridge in the world, with an overall length of 6,442 feet. It crosses over the Mississippi River and connects St. Louis, Missouri, with East St. Louis, Illinois.
Its ribbed, tubular steel arch spans of 502ft, 520ft, and 502 ft and double-decked design shattered all engineering precedents for the time. Four pairs of arches per span (upper and lower) were set eight feet apart, supporting an upper deck for vehicular traffic and a lower deck for rail traffic.
The bridge’s cast chromium steel components can be considered the first use of structural alloy steel in a major building construction. Eads pointed out that the compressive strength of steel was ideal for use in the upright arch design.
When Populous (formerly HOK Sport Venue and Event) designed the iconic Gate 3 entrance on the west side of the stadium, the architect honored the nearby Eads Bridge by including the upright arch and echoing its double deck construction.
To create this arch, Chicago Metal curved 12 pieces of 12in extra heavy pipe to a 73ft radius 38ft long; 8 pieces of 12in extra heavy pipe to a 67-1/2 ft radius 36ft long; and 4 pieces of 12in Schedule 80 pipe to a 67ft, 5in center-line radius, 36ft long.
The structural steel fabricator commented on this project, “All of that 12” pipe ended up making two of these box trusses. They are on 8th Street, the West Face of Busch Stadium. They are called the Eads Bridge because their architecture was modeled after the engineering marvel that crosses the Mississippi here is St. Louis. I’m not sure if I passed this along back then or not, but these pipes were rolled DEAD ON. The guys in the shop said that had never seen a pipe come in and hit every point like that in a long long time.”
So, should you see this stadium on TV or in person, look for its tribute to steel construction.
