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Black River Footbridge

Windsor County, Vermont

Photos 

Black River Footbridge

Elevation from northeast quadrant

Photo taken by Nick Boppel in August 2020

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BH Photo #478169

Map 

Description 

This bridge at first glance has the appearance of a repurposed truss bridge that originally served a mill building, given that its western terminus is at the entrance for a business that is in a repurposed mill building, and given its proximity to a former hydroelectric power dam. However, upon closer inspection, the bridge has all-bolted connections, which suggests that the bridge is of a modern (or at least relatively recent) construction. There are bolt-connected truss bridges from the early 20th century that are historic, but these are rare. As such, it seems likely that this bridge was built recently to serve the new businesses in the old mill building, possibly as a replacement for a previous footbridge that once was here. However, it is evident that a lot of attention was paid to aesthetics and making the bridge look like it "belongs" in its setting.

June 2021: The bridge is indeed a replacement (2011) of an older bridge to access the Fellows Gear Shaper Company plant. According to the NRHP, the older bridge was built c. 1912. The Fellows Co. left Springfield in 1967 and bridge and buildings were mostly abandoned until the opening of the Springfield Health Center in 2012.

Facts 

Overview
Pratt through truss bridge over Black River on Pedestrian Walkway in Springfield.
Location
Springfield, Windsor County, Vermont
Status
Open to pedestrians
History
Replaced a similar bridge
Design
Pratt through truss
Also called
Fellows Gear Shaper Company Bridge
Approximate latitude, longitude
+43.30190, -72.48558   (decimal degrees)
43°18'07" N, 72°29'08" W   (degrees°minutes'seconds")
Approximate UTM coordinates
18/703943/4797411 (zone/easting/northing)
Inventory number
BH 90190 (Bridgehunter.com ID)

Categories 

Bolted (27)
Built 2011 (76)
Built during 2010s (480)
Footbridge (432)
Modern (2,680)
Open to pedestrians (4,603)
Owned privately (1,949)
 Pratt through truss (6,137)
Pratt truss (10,417)
Springfield, Vermont (6)
Through truss (17,289)
Truss (36,056)
Vermont (682)
Windsor County, Vermont (113)

Update Log 

  • June 22, 2021: New photos from Chester Gehman
  • August 8, 2020: New photos from Nick Boppel

Sources 

Comments 

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