To better control the water flow from the upper Bloody Tanks Wash through the flat areas of Miami (Miami Flats), the water was directed to a channel that was constructed to run parallel to Live Oak Street and downtown Sullivan Street as a continuation of Bloody Tanks Wash. To support transportation during the rainy seasons and occasional flash floods, the Town of Miami purchased bridge plans from the Topeka Bridge and Iron Company, designed by Daniel Luten.

A Luten arch is a patented concrete arch design for bridges, designed by Daniel B. Luten of Indianapolis, Indiana. Luten was awarded more than 30 patents for his improvements of the Luten arch design. Luten designed some 17,000 arches and his designs were in every state of the Union with the exception of 3.

Luten was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan in 1869, graduated with a Civil Engineering degree from the University of Michigan, was an architectural and Sanitary Engineering instructor for Purdue University before he formed his bridge company.

The first concrete, arch bridge built in Miami was the Keystone Avenue Bridge in 1918. As the majority of miners walked from the hills on the south side of Miami, where the majority of the population lived, the Keystone Bridge was a direct path to the Keystone Stairs. The 155-step staircase was the main route to their copper mining jobs on the north side of Miami.

Four more bridges were constructed to accommodate the pedestrian and vehicular travel:

• Miami Avenue Bridge
• Inspiration Avenue Bridge
• Cordova Avenue Bridge
• Reppy Avenue Bridge (finished in 1921)

The five, identical Luten arch bridges are still in use today, connecting Live Oak Street (Highway 60) to Sullivan Street, the historic downtown area of Miami.

Length of bridges: 53.8 feet

Height of bridges: 16.1 feet