The bridge was designed by Waddell & Harrington, and fabricated and erected by the Pennsylvania Steel Company.

When the two 185-foot (56 m) towers were completed, falsework for the main span was constructed in a fan shape that allowed the main span to be constructed in the raised position 130 feet (40 m) above the river.

[3] By 1916, each day the bridge was crossed by about 300 trains, and was raised for river traffic about 75 times.

[7] There are proposals for an additional or replacement bridge at Canal Street to support the full high-speed, high-frequency build out of the St. Louis-Chicago Lincoln Service passenger rail line.

[4][8] When it was constructed in 1914, its 1500-ton main span was the heaviest of any vertical lift bridge in the United States.