Just east of the Ak-sar-ben Bridge over the Missouri River, we found a map-based welcome to Council Bluffs and Iowa. ("Ak-Sar-Ben," you ask? You figure it out!) (September 1999 photo)

This classic bridge carried Route 6 over the Missouri River, connecting Broadway in Council Bluffs with Douglas Street in Omaha. Today it connects with the Dodge and Douglas Streets one-way couplet. It was built in 1888 as the first wagon/trolley bridge between Omaha and Council Bluffs. The venerable structure became known as the Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge in 1939 when the Knights of Ak-Sar-Ben purchased it and eliminated the tolls as a public service.