Bridge of Hope

Bridge of Hope
The Bridge of Hope as viewed from the east bank of the Mississippi, north of the bridge in early-June 2006.
Coordinates	45°35′58″N 94°11′16″W / 45.59944°N 94.18778°W / 45.59944; -94.18778
Carries	Four lanes of MN 15
Crosses	Mississippi River, BNSF Railway, Benton Drive (Benton County Road 33)
Locale	Sauk Rapids, Minnesota
Maintained by	Minnesota Department of Transportation
ID number	05011
Characteristics
Design	Precast concrete girder bridge
Total length	1711 feet
Width	85 feet
Longest span	140 feet
Clearance below	18 feet
History
Opened	1995
Location

The Bridge of Hope is a concrete girder bridge that spans the Mississippi River between Sartell, Minnesota and Sauk Rapids, Minnesota. The bridge was completed eight months early, aided by favorable weather and trouble-free construction. It was built in 1995 and was designed by Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Jim Hill Group.

The bridge is named in honor of Jacob Wetterling, a boy who was abducted from St. Joseph, Minnesota in 1989 (his remains were discovered in 2016). The name was chosen by a group of high school students who wanted to memorialize Wetterling and other missing children.

• List of crossings of the Upper Mississippi River

• Costello, Mary Charlotte (2002). Climbing the Mississippi River Bridge by Bridge, Volume Two: Minnesota. Cambridge, MN: Adventure Publications. ISBN 0-9644518-2-4.
• "Session Weekly, May 26, 1995". Minnesota House of Representatives. 1995. Retrieved May 27, 2006.