Closed today, following a crash that damaged some of the structure. Will be evaluated for reopening.
Good news for this bridge...
As a resident of Cumberland County, I was reading their Comprehensive Plan (land use, economic development, etc.) that was released last fall, and noticed that this bridge is officially named as one of two truss bridges (the other one being the Greenlane bridge) that they are specifically looking to preserve.
My husbands Great Grandfather was Thomas M. Nelson of
Nelson Buchanan Bridge and Pittsburg Bridge. If anyone has any info about him or his work, we would love to hear about it. Please email us.would love copies of blue prints.
JS... I do have good news about Greenlane... as mitigation for the loss of these bridges, there will be a bridge rehab of Greenlane. The project is still in design phase so you won't see construction right now, but it is required mitigation so this bridge at least is safe for the foreseeable future.
Nathan, thank you for your comment. I got my hopes up in a recent article on the Craighead Bridge where the county Planning Director mentioned Hertzler Bridge and the Greenlane Farm bridge as being under restoration (although to my knowledge neither has started).
I have parked my car on Hertzler Bridge to listen to the creek, look for herons, etc.. You can sit there ten minutes and not see another car. Just spectacular.
JS... I've been in Section 106 Consultation with PennDOT on the Wolf Bridge, and its been a long process, but I believe I commented at some point that if the Wolf Bridge is lost, then the Hertzler Bridge should receive preservation priority. Whether this happens or not remains to be seen, but if they ever try to replace Hertzler Bridge, that is the argument I will make, as its not acceptable to lose both of these bridges, especially when Hertzler Bridge is clearly a stronger preservation candidate for several reasons.
We have two of these bridges in the Carlisle, PA area - this one, and the Wolf Bridge (which is soon to be demolished, unfortunately).
This one, though, I think is the better one, and I read one article recently that hinted it may be rehabilitated. It is a beautiful old structure in a very pleasant, lightly traveled rural setting - a perfect example of why these bridges deserve every bit as much in the way of preservation efforts as the ubiquitous covered bridges.
This bridge will remain closed until they do the full rehab in 2019.
http://cumberlink.com/news/local/hertzler-bridge-to-remain-c...