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Iron Bridge Road Bridge

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

Photos 

Photo taken by Brian McKee in May 2009

Enlarge

BH Photo #140014

Map 

Description 

FROM THE 1996-2001 PENNSYLVANIA HISTORIC BRIDGE SURVEY: The 1-span, 80'-long, pin-connected Pratt pony truss bridge built in 1898 is supported on fieldstone abutments with wingwalls surmounted by parapets. The truss is composed of built-up members of standard steel sections for the verticals and upper chords, eye bars for the lower chords, and rods for the diagonals. The rolled floorbeams with U-shaped hangers carry steel stringers and a steel grid deck placed in 1975. Pipe railings have been replaced by welded steel channel railings, but otherwise the truss bridge is complete. The pin-connected Pratt truss type/design was popular for use with local roads in Pennsylvania from the 1880s to about 1910. It had reached a high degree of standardization by the late 1890s. This bridge, appropriately located on Iron Bridge Road, is the oldest of 3 remaining pin-connected truss highway bridges in Lancaster County. It is historically and technologically distinguished as a good, complete, traditionally composed example of the pin-connected Pratt truss type/design in the county and region.

Facts 

Overview
Pony truss bridge over Conestoga River on Iron Bridge Road
Location
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
Status
Open to traffic
History
Built 1898; rehabilitated 1975
Design
Pratt pony truss
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 79.1 ft.
Total length: 80.1 ft.
Deck width: 15.1 ft.
Recognition
Eligible for the National Register of Historic Places
Also called
Big Conestoga Bridge 3
Approximate latitude, longitude
+40.14486, -76.01008   (decimal degrees)
40°08'41" N, 76°00'36" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
18/413961/4444324 (zone/easting/northing)
Quadrangle map:
Terre Hill
Inventory numbers
PA 36 7213 0807 0303 (Pennsylvania Bridge Management System number)
BH 31097 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

19th Century (8,679)
Built 1898 (330)
Built during 1890s (3,224)
Conestoga River (17)
Functionally obsolete (5,796)
Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (198)
NR-eligible (4,118)
One-lane traffic (7,925)
Open (41,014)
 Owned by county (21,659)
Pennsylvania (6,197)
Pony truss (17,090)
Pratt pony truss (3,987)
Pratt truss (10,410)
Span length 75-100 feet (6,680)
Total length 75-100 feet (6,866)
Truss (36,015)

Update Log 

  • August 12, 2013: Updated by Jodi Christman: Tweaked GPS
  • May 25, 2012: Updated by Jodi Christman: Added description
  • May 9, 2009: New photos from Brian McKee

Sources 

  • Brian McKee - bjmckee51 [at] yahoo [dot] com
  • Jodi Christman - masterofchaos [at] outlook [dot] com

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