EL Spur - Mill Street Overpass
Description
This Erie Lackawanna Railroad bridge transported goods and supplies to the Jergens Company. The location of the bridge was part of the old Belleville Copper Rolling Mill, which operated between 1813-1938. The railroad bridge spanned over Mill Street and the Second River, as well as the old Rolling Mill arch bridge below it, which was built in 1838.This area was originally used for copper milling as early as 1814 and lasted about 125 years. The Belleville Rolling Hills Copper Mill supplied copper sheeting for:
- "The Demologus" - First U. S. steam war vessel in 1814
- "The Savannah" - First steam propelled vessel to cross Atlantic in 1818
- Old Ironsides" - Famous early locomotive built by Matthias W. Baldwin in 1832
In 1939, after operations ended at the mill site, Andrew Jergens purchased the property for the manufacturing of its skincare products. In 1975, the pharmaceutical company Roche Molecular Systems took over and utilized the old Jergens facilities for research and development, as well as diagnostic equipment. In 2008 after Roche vacated, pollutants such as PCBs, arsenic and other heavy metals were discovered in both the soil and the groundwater. Some of the contamination dates back almost two centuries from the copper mill that had resided on the site.
As of 2016, this railroad bridge was demolished. The 1838 arch bridge below it was also threaten to be demolished. Fortunately due to protests by the good citizens of Belleville, the bridge is currently undergoing restoration.
At least 8 nearby historical markers are within one mile of this bridge: Branch Brook Park (approx. 0.3 miles away), The Battle of Second River (approx. half a mile away), Karr/Milburn House (approx. 0.7 miles away), Forest Hill Historic District (approx. 0.8 miles away), Morris Canal (approx. 0.8 miles away), Sydenham House (approx. 0.9 miles away), St. Peter's Church (approx. 0.9 miles away), and Victory (approx. 1.1 miles away).
Facts
- Overview
- Abandoned pony/through plate girder bridge over Mill Street on Railroad
- Location
- Belleville, Essex County, New Jersey
- Status
- Demolished in 2016
- Railroads
- - Erie Lackawanna Railroad (EL)
- Erie Railroad (ERIE)
- Design
- Pony plate girder
- Also called
- Erie Spur - Mill Street Overpass
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +40.79009, -74.17334 (decimal degrees)
40°47'24" N, 74°10'24" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 18/569744/4515784 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Orange
- Inventory number
- BH 56998 (Bridgehunter.com ID)
Update Log
- May 4, 2016: New photos from Ron Reyer
- January 29, 2014: Photo imported by Dave King
- July 6, 2013: Added by Dave King
Related Bridges
- Belleville Copper Rolling-Mill Bridge (Below) - Belleville Copper Rolling Mill 1813-1938
Sources
- Dave King - DKinghawkfan [at] hotmail [dot] com
- Ron Reyer
- Belleville, NJ
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