Van Wagoner was the head of the Michigan State Highway Department from 1933 until 1940, when he was elected governor.

In 2004, the 1893 Sterling Road truss bridge was relocated from Hillsdale County to the adjacent site for use as a crossing on the pedestrian trail.

[4] The bridge is 45 feet (14 m) long and carries a span with a 41.4-foot-wide (12.6 m) deck with a 33-foot-wide (10 m) roadway bordered by sidewalks.

The deck is edged by railings made of concrete posts with ornamental metal lattice sections fixed in between.

The substructure of the bridge is made up of concrete abutments and wing walls with a decorative stepped motif.