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QUINCY, ILL. -- The Stone Arch Bridge in the 1700 Block of South 8th Street is looking more like a modern-day cave painting than a historical landmark.

Graffiti in the form of a clown face and other tags now covers the underside and sides of the bridge.

Built in the late 1880s, this bridge spans Curtis Creek just south of the Eighth Street entrances to Indian Mounds Park and South Park.

But now city officials are wondering how to remove the paint without compromising the historical bridge. Sandblasting is one option, but city officials aren't sure.

"The other alternative is simply painting over it, which we're going to have to determine at this point which is more feasible," Marty Stegeman, Quincy's director of Central Services said. "I don't know how many hours it's going to take with a sandblaster. Between this and the east side of the facility, it may not be cost effective for us to spend that much time with a sandblaster and do it completely."

This is one of the first times the bridge has been vandalized. Stegeman said even with cameras, installing lights to monitor the bridge at night would be a problem. How the city approaches the cleanup will come down to cost, Stegeman said. He'll be forced to pull crews off of other projects to get rid of the graffiti.

"I don't know how much time it's going to take at this point," he said. "We haven't determined that yet. But certainly, you have limited resources and manpower and when you're pulling them off a job that you're doing, to do something like this, it takes away from the entire community."

Stegeman said he's not sure when the removal will begin, but he hopes to have it down within the next few weeks.

Many area residents take photographs near the bridge. Do you have fond memories of this historic landmark? Share your stories below and on our Facebook page here.