Looking for historical data for all the foot bridges in Cook Forest?
Looking for historical data for all the foot bridges in Cook Forest?
That seems to be the case, as the NRHP form for the cantilever lists Penn Bridge Co. as the builder of the smaller span, and https://books.google.com/books?id=mU5RAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA719&dq=%... states verbatim that Penn Bridge Co. built the bridge in 1914.
I wonder if this photo suggests a possible explanation for the unusual cantilever truss that replaced this bridge. I found a historical article stating that the collapse was because the new bridge was built on old piers. As this photo shows, one span was not destroyed. Perhaps the cantilever truss was a way to build a new nearby pier, reduce the piers in the river, yet also retain the one surviving brand new truss span that didn't collapse. See photo 2 here: https://bridgehunter.com/pa/bradford/athens/
That's the bridge I was talking about,Dana and Kay.I'll let you know what West Reading does repairwise with this bridge when and if I hear anything or read it in the local paper.
Thanks for posting this bridge,Dana and Kay.My fiancée is very familiar with this bridge.
Thanks Dana and Kay for posting this bridge on here.By the way,a N/S freight train hauling trash cars derailed not too long ago under and by this bridge.That was one hell of a stinky clean up job!
PennDOT announced that this bridge will be repaired starting 6/24/19 and estimated to be completed on 8/23/19.Work being done will include deck repairs,substructure and slope repairs.Passenger and truck traffic will be detoured while repairs are being performed on this bridge.
Amy, have they closed the road ?
This bridge has been closed since the central Pennsylvania floods in September of 2011. There are no current plans to either rehab or remove this bride. Attached pics are from 2017.
How long did the original construction of this bridge take?
Asking because the 8 months and millions wasted on repairing it are still pissing me off and I want to verbally bash the union working on it for not being able to complete the repairs, with today's current technology, in a respectable amount of time.
I would guarantee the original builders took all of 1-2 weeks to complete the entire thing. But I am having a hard time identifying this information
Thanks for posting this bridge Dana and Kay on this site.I will be keeping an eye on this bridge being that I do cross this bridge to go fishing at Blue Marsh lake.
I read an article in the local paper that a coffer dam which was built under the bridge while reconstruction of the bridge is going on is contributing to bank erosion on the Reading side of the river.Record rainfall is helping also with the erosion being that the water is being pushed toward the bank of the river from the coffer dam which is across 2/3 of the river under the bridge.Luckily the gas and water lines were moved.
A proposed ordinance designating travel on Fenstermaker Road Bridge as 1 lane of travel and designating 30 feet west of the bridge located to the west of the intersection of Fenstermaker Road and Mill Creek Road as a stop location and authorizing posting of signs designating said intersections as stop intersections and providing fines and penalties for violations.This ordinance will be considered on Wednesday,June 12,2019 at 7:30 p.m.If and when the ordinance is passed i'll post it here.
You're very welcome,Dana.I plan on being on the road pretty much this summer so wherever i'm at if I see a bridge that's not on here i'll post the information on where it's located and we'll take it from there.Also I will be in different counties also.
Based on the trim, is this a King?
Don,
A long time ago James Baughn (Bridgehunter webmaster) imported all existing links to my website. Since them I revised how my website works and the links changed. Looks like James tried to update the links but left the index.htm in place. I sent him an email and hoping he can fix that.
The final arbiter of what belongs on the site is James, the site owner.
If, in your opinion, something does not belong here you can use the "contact the webmaster" button to express your opinion.
Doing this in a non-public way helps maintain the cordiality that should be visible to site visitors.
These additions are absolutely lame! Not historic by a long shot and not even in the ballpark of notable or interesting! You are doing nothing but watering down this site with this junk!!
Nathan's link on this page is off slightly and gives a 404.
It should be:
https://historicbridges.org/bridges/browser/?bridgebrowser=t...
I didn't see a way to edit links.
You are Welcome George, not hugely rare but posted while chasing clues you had provided. Keep us posted on Berks county bridges as you have for a long time. Thanks!
Dana and Kay,thanks for posting this culvert on the site.When I saw this culvert on street view and saw where it was located I was amazed the culvert was there because I never saw it.I do remember being on that road because me and my fiancée were looking at the abandoned railroad tracks awhile back.Also I grew up in Quakertown.
The end gets nearer...
https://www.meadvilletribune.com/news/penndot-posts--ton-wei...
PennDOT posts 11-ton weight limit on Cambridge Springs bridge
Meadville Tribune Jun 4, 2019
CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS – An 11-ton weight limit has been posted on the Cambridge Springs truss bridge carrying routes 6 and 19 over French Creek in Cambridge Springs.
The weight restriction was announced this morning by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
While car traffic isn’t restricted, there is a truck detour posted. The truck detour uses McClellan and Grant streets.
The weight limit is expected to remain in place until the bridge is replaced during the 2020 construction season, said Jill Harry, PennDOT spokeswoman.
just read an article in the local paper that the Board of Supervisors of Maxatawny Township,Berks County will consider enactment of an ordinance on Wednesday,June 12,2019 prohibiting truck traffic in excess of 10 tons or any combination vehicle exceeding a maximum gross weight of 13 tons on this bridge.Exceptions will be local deliveries including pickups,School buses,emergency vehicles and vehicles of governmental entities.Weight restriction signs will be posted and the weight restrictions will be enforced by both the code enforcement officer and the police.I will post any information on if and when I hear or read anything about this ordinance going into effect.
Creek is up. The bridge has been untethered from concrete block and still tied off to the tree.
Thanks Mike!
Just read an article in yesterdays paper about this bridge.Closed 9 years ago as a structurally deficient bridge,this span is not set to open until 2022.The $20 million project will involve reconstruction of the bridge.The project is taking more than a dozen years to complete because it is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.This honor translates into having hurdles including environmental surveys before a project can begin.A team of planners presented an update on the project on 5-22-19 at Montgomery County Community College-Pottstown which is several blocks from the bridge.According to one of the planners the environmental process took 6 years which I take as it's completed.The planners unveiled the latest preliminary proposal which is expected to be complete at the end of 2019.The final design plans will take another year and a half.Construction is set to begin in the spring of 2021 and take at least a year.The proposed bridge will have a pedestrian walkway along with the inbound lane to Pottstown wide enough also for bikes.The plan calls for replacing the existing alignment of the 749-foot-long bridge with a five-span concrete beam structure.The plan also calls for two 11-foot traffic lanes,two 4-foot shoulders and a 6-foot-wide sidewalk on the eastern side which I mentioned earlier.Improvements will also be made to the intersection on the Pottstown side of the bridge which is located in Montgomery County.This includes a new traffic signal and a turn lane onto Industrial Boulevard for better traffic flow.
The Secretarial Letter arrived from the PUC to live forward with disassembly. Here is PennDOTs take on phase 1. It's a Facebook share.
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2232025480168050...
My guess is that this is a later CBW bridge probably around 1885.
Regards,
Art S.
PENNDOT report:
https://www.paprojectpath.org/docs/default-source/penndot-cr...
This bridge has been reopened and truck traffic is rerouted from other direction to access gas plant and pipelines.
This bridge was demolished (may be replaced but not sure) early 2018. As December 2018, has not been replaced. I will be driving where it is this weekend and will update if they do replace it.
Dana and Kay,i asked my fiancée who's from this area and she told me the canal was in operation from the late 1800's to the early 1900's.Of course railroads killed the canal shipping.Also I could be off on the years the canal was in operation.
Dana and Kay,i'm not really familiar with this area or the bridge.
Dana and Kay,what rehab was done to this bridge?I never heard anything of it.
George guessing this is a REALY old bridge, When was union canal in Operation?
Hey George this says 1841 Build Date!
"Allow me to picture my Lewisburg . September 1863, after alighting at a farm shed in a bare field by the side of a road, near a hotel named Montandon, from a small passenger car with red plush seats for about 30 passengers, which ran up the east side of the river from Dauphin, 19 miles above Harrisburg. There was only one track. The canal then in use occupied most of the ground between the river and the rails. After picking our our small trunks and eyeing each other, we packed into a coach drawn by two slow horses and drove to the mouth of a covered bridge, which was also used for the horses or mules. Paid our toll. Thru the dust we emerged and a big woolen mill greeted us. "
https://susquehannavalley.blogspot.com/2019/05/when-lewisbur...
From the E. Gipe Caruthers booklet Seeing Lancaster County’s Covered Bridges “SUBSCRIPTION BRIDGE- The first crossing was erected here in 1781. Prior that time the creek was fordable at this spot, but when the milldam was built near Mercer’s, the water backed up and became too deep for fording. Neither county wanted to spend the money for a bridge so finally certain individuals took the bull by the horns. They asked for donations and practically everybody subscribed. People promised to contribute materials, work, money, etc. until they had the means to build it themselves. For this reason, Mr. Walter Miller of Christiana dubbed it the Subscription Bridge.
Ever since that time, its exact ownership has been a puzzle. The present structure, dated to 1909, was paid for in a unique manner – ¾ of the bill was divided equally between the two counties and the other quarter between the two benefiting townships. Officially, it is an “inter-township” bridge.”
D&K:
Thanks for looking.
Dana and Kay,thanks for the information.
Tony,this bridge looks to be bigger than a culvert.
Dana and Kay,that probably is what this bridge replaced.Don't know for sure without research.
This bridge was removed in 2014-2015 as part of a project to realign the intersections of Routes 6 and 287 at this location.
Bridge has been demolished for a while per article showing someone who thought the bridge still existed...
https://6abc.com/pickup-truck-flips-over-lands-on-amtrak-tra...
Particularly Nice Photography. Thanks for sharing.
This bridge was demolished in 2013
http://www.mainlinemedianews.com/mainlinetimes/news/demoliti...
Not sure George, National bridge inventory indicates been closed for awhile.
Dana and Kay,when was this bridge closed?I didn't hear nothing or read anything in the paper.
Dana and Kay,i put a message on the replacement listing for this bridge about my fiancée remembering this bridge being that she's from this area.
Dana and Kay,i was under this bridge years ago and didn't see any deterioration or structural problems.
I just looked at street view and realized this is actually of the Schuylkill River Bridge on Rte 183 which is a concrete arch and also was worked on not too long ago.I have comments on that bridge listing.Just letting you know.
Glad it was of interest
Dana and Kay,my fiancée remembers the predecessor bridge that was here.I just asked her because she's from this area.
Dana and Kay,I was under this bridge many years ago.Thanks for posting this bridge.Don't know of any deterioration or structural problems with this bridge.
George as example (Old) only 1975. Next find older could be of more interest. When one finds 4 or more helps to go back and number as 1st oldest etc. I try and follow pontist guidelines with this and there is a LITLE debate now and again. All good and thanks for being Berks County Bridge spotter!
George as example replacement can be current and Modern
George Historical progression. REPLACED in 1925. Probably a nice truss it replaced!
It is likely nothing but a culvert.
Dana and Kay,this bridge is a replacement bridge?I didn't read or hear anything locally about this bridge being replaced.Also on street view the bridge doesn't look like a replaced bridge.
Thanks for posting this bridge,Dana and Kay.I didn't even know about this bridge.
Dana and Kay,thanks for posting this bridge.There was no length information or when it was built listed in the article,just about what had to be done to it repairwise.From looking at the bridge on street view i'm thinking it would be better to replace it over repair but that's not for me to decide.
1923
George Not listed in NBI, maybe under certain Length not listed. Looks about 20 feet. Cant tell from street view what it is but there is a 1923 Tbeem not far from there.
Geoff,when they built these towers they were built to last so I would guess it's still there.
Geoff,when they built these towers they were built to last so I would guess it's still there.
Geoff,i would have to agree about it still being there unless somebody has been there recently and knows if it's there.Looks boarded up to me.
Yes that was an interlocking tower. Since these DL&W ones were reinforced concrete, it's likely still standing.
Yes that was the old station, but I doubt it's still there.
DEMOLISHED :( Photo taken 05.11.2019 of replacement UC attached.
Thanks for posting this tunnel,Geoff.
Thanks for posting this tunnel,Geoff.
Thanks,Geoff.Is that a rail traffic tower in the picture I see which looks abandoned?
Geoff,i noticed a buiding along the railroad tracks in picture #2.Do you know if this building was a railroad station and if it's still there?
Geoff,i noticed a buiding along the railroad tracks in picture #2.Do you know if this building was a railroad station and if it's still there?
Yes Tunkhannock Viaduct is in Nicholson PA. There is an active Factoryville Tunnel on the NS line and here's a link to the abandoned tunnels http://www.undergroundminers.com/factoryvilletunnel.html
I was on an abandoned rail site and the Nicholson Viaduct was mentioned.Is this the Nicholson Viaduct?
Dana and Kay,this bridge,the rte 422 bridge on street view is the one I reported on about the outside lane being closed while repairs were made to the abutment and whatever else was done.Also it is now open including the lane that was closed.Never thought to put the messages here.Smart move,Dana and Kay!
Lots of Bridges in this Stretch!
George looks like these can be seen from Bridge you mentioned or East One.
By the way,the bridge that I reported on(the correct one)has been repaired underneath and the one lane that was closed is now open as per WFMZ channel 69 news reporting on their broadcast this evening.
Dana and Kay,i just looked on the map and forgot to mention its the next bridge from this one heading toward Reading and there are also Norfolk/Southern railroad tracks running under the bridge on the far side of the river.This should help clear up any confusion.
Dana and Kay,thanks for posting this bridge on this site but I actually had the wrong bridge listed to have repairs done.The actual bridge is over the Schuylkill River between the Rte 176 entrance onto Rte 422 and the Lancaster Ave-Bingaman Street exit.What happened was I looked at the article online on WFMZ 69 news Berks newscast and saw the bridge there and knew I had the wrong one.As with the one you posted there is no historical information on this bridge either.I didn't find this out until I looked at the article online.They even had it on Google maps on the website.Hopefully this isn't an inconvenience.
Just saw a picture of this bridge in todays paper and saw the year 1923 stamped in the concrete at the top of the arch.Don't know if that is the year this bridge was built or as I mentioned in a previous article that this was when work was done on this bridge.
Thanks Luke for correcting the information on this bridge.Now let's see if Norfolk/Southern does what they say they'll do concerning the underpass.
Thanks Dana and Kay.I read in the paper that this arched bridge numbered 54/03 that the underpass I mentioned crosses under was made of brown sandstone which was favored for early railroad bridges and lined with a brick interior.A concrete arch addition on the eastern side widened the bridge by several feet.The bridge was enlarged and strengthened in 1923.The abutments on the western side were encased in reinforced concrete,but the stone arch remained uncovered.All of this information was in the earlier article I posted but I didn't mention these facts because I wanted to see if any historical information was revealed that might be what I read.Hopefully this information helps and i'll post any further information I get in the future.
nice find George
Correction on the posting of August 12, 2018. The original location of the iron bridge was actually on Quarry Road (T894) in East Earl Township, not North Farmersville Road in West Earl Township. Sorry for any inconvenience.
Evidently this bridge was rehabilitated in 2018 based on the December 2017 photos compared to April 2019.
Great photos Paul!
Just read in today's local paper about this bridge being replaced and re-opened yesterday.I posted on 10-29-17 the new bridge dimensions along with the daily traffic count.In the paper the article said the original bridge was reconstructed in 1969 whether it means anything or not.
thanks Luke
Both spans moved to work area for rehabilitation on April 12,2019. Drone pics by Dan Houlman. Project is to be completed in August 2019
It doesn't. See: The images of it on Nathan's site, linked in the sources section.
added street view to show plaque before google updates. may say 1918
This bridge was re-opened this morning according to WFMZ 69 news out of Allentown.
This bridge has a very obvious Builders Plate dated 1912 by Amercan Bridge of New York.
One source indicates this bridge was built with single rr track at top chord, and another ( never used ) at lower chord.
Just read in todays local paper that the supervisors discussed temporary weight restrictions be enforced on Schaeffer Road while this bridge is closed for repairs after April and lasting for 30 days.The main concern is truck traffic.Detour signs were discussed being placed on Rte 222 to dissuade truckers from travelling on Schaeffer Road during the closure.When I read or hear more on this project I will post it here.
As per an article in todays local paper,completion of replacement of this bridge is now pushed back to at least fall of this year due to solid ground under the creek being deeper than originally thought.This means the pier footings have to be redesigned which means additional time to complete this project.Work began in May of 2018 to replace the two-span steel bridge with a two-span concrete beam bridge.Detours are still in place.