The Clark Street Bridge is a bascule bridge that spans the Chicago River in downtown Chicago, connecting the Near North Side with The Loop via Clark Street.^[1]

The current bridge, which was completed in 1929,^[2] is the eighth bridge to span the river at this point.^[3] In 1853 the bridge was struck by a steamer, called the London, and collapsed, blocking traffic on the river. The bridge was dredged and river traffic resumed on September 8, 1853.^[4] In 1854, the city approved an expenditure of $12,000 to replace the bridge with a pivot bridge.^[5] During the Lager Beer Riot in 1855, the bridge was pivoted to help contain the rioters.^[6]

On June 26, 1907, the steamer Atlas collided with the south abutment of the bridge and sank. She was declared a total loss.^[7]

The passenger ship SS Eastland was scheduled to sail from the dock at the Clark Street Bridge when she capsized on July 24, 1915, killing 844 people.^[8]

In March 2012, an unidentified man jumped from the bridge and was rescued by local high school students on a field trip. He later died of hypothermia.^{[citation needed]}

In 1916, Carl Sandburg wrote the poem "Clark Street Bridge."^[9]

• List of bridges documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Illinois