Hertzler Bridge
Description
FROM THE 1996-2001 PENNSYLVANIA HISTORIC BRIDGE SURVEY: 'The one-span, 218'-long, pin-connected, Pennsylvania thru truss bridge is composed of built-up sections and eye bars. The bridge has built-up floorbeams with Z-plate floorbeam hangers. The open steel grid deck and stringers were placed ca. 1960. The bridge is supported on stone abutments with U-shaped wingwalls. The bridge was fabricated in 1896 by the Pittsburgh Bridge Co. and erected by their agents Nelson & Buchanan of Chambersburg. It is historically and technologically significant as one of the four oldest identified examples of Pennsylvania thru truss highway bridges, and one of only about 20 examples from 1890 to 1937 in the state. The Pennsylvania truss design, a variation of the Pratt truss with subdivided panels and polygonal upper chord, was developed in about 1875 by bridge engineers of the Pennsylvania RR. The design was used primarily for long-span railroad applications, but found some popularity for long-span (approx. 200') highway applications from about 1890 to 1910.Facts
- Overview
- Through truss bridge over Conodoguinet Creek on Creek Road (TR 427)
- Location
- Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
- Status
- Open to traffic
- History
- Built 1896; rehabilitated ca. 1960
- Builders
- - Nelson & Buchanan Co. of Chambersburg & Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (erectors)
- Pittsburgh Bridge Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (fabricators)
- Design
- Pennsylvania through truss
- Dimensions
-
Total length: 217.9 ft.
Deck width: 15.8 ft.
- Recognition
- Eligible for the National Register of Historic Places
- Approximate latitude, longitude
- +40.22167, -77.25833 (decimal degrees)
40°13'18" N, 77°15'30" W (degrees°minutes'seconds") - Approximate UTM coordinates
- 18/307845/4454806 (zone/easting/northing)
- Quadrangle map:
- Plainfield
- Average daily traffic (as of 2017)
- 439
- Inventory numbers
- PA 21 7204 0427 3616 (Pennsylvania Bridge Management System number)
PANBI 14064 (Pennsylvania BRKEY bridge number on the 2011 NBI)
BH 30815 (Bridgehunter.com ID) - Inspection report (as of July 2017)
- Overall condition: Fair
Superstructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Substructure condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Deck condition rating: Fair (5 out of 9)
Sufficiency rating: 16.8 (out of 100)
View more at BridgeReports.com
Update Log
- May 3, 2020: New photos from Patrick Gurwell
- December 31, 2018: New photos from Jodi Christman
- August 17, 2017: Updated by Christopher Finigan: Added category "Pin-connected"
- January 21, 2013: Updated by Luke Harden: Corrected builder.
- January 3, 2012: New Street View added by Jodi Christman
- December 26, 2011: Updated by Jodi Christman: Added description note and builders
- September 25, 2010: New photos from Jodi Christman
Related Bridges
- Wolf Bridge (Same design)
Sources
- Jodi Christman - masterofchaos [at] outlook [dot] com
- Historicbridges.org - by Nathan Holth
- Luke
- Patrick Gurwell - pgurwell [at] gmail [dot] com
Comments
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.
Craighead Bridge is one of their bridges, in Cumberland County.
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.
Took this last spring on the bridge...someone in our marketing department liked the composition so I thought I'd post it.
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 page's URL is http://bridgehunter.com/pa/cumberland/217204042736160/
This bridge will remain closed until they do the full rehab in 2019.
http://cumberlink.com/news/local/hertzler-bridge-to-remain-c...