Highland Park Bridge (1902)

Highland Park Bridge (1902)
Coordinates40°29′28″N 79°55′08″W / 40.4910°N 79.9188°W / 40.4910; -79.9188
Carries2 streetcar tracks paved for traffic
CrossesAllegheny River
Locale19th Street Sharpsburg and Butler St. at Baker St. (Pittsburgh)
Other name(s)Sharpsburg Bridge, 19th Street Bridge
Characteristics
Designcantilever through truss
Total length1,850 feet (560 m)
Longest span850 feet (260 m)
History
Opened1902
Closed1938
Location
Map

The 1902 Highland Park Bridge was a cantilever through truss bridge that carried two streetcar tracks across the Allegheny River and Sixmile Island between the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Highland Park and Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania. By the 1930s, the bridge had become notorious for its narrowness and chronic maintenance problems, prompting suggestions for replacement. This bridge, known also as the Highland Park Bridge opened in 1938.[1]

Location

The bridge was erected in two sections, with the cantilever on the Pittsburgh side of Sixmile Island and a truss bridge on the Sharpsburg side. It was situated 400 feet (120 m) downstream from the 1938 Highland Park bridge, at the then downstream from the end of the island. [2] However, contemporary maps and pictures imply that the island has moved almost its entire length downstream, making the bridge location the current (2010) upstream end of the island.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to 1902 Highland Park Bridge.
  1. ^ "Highland Park Bridge 1902". September 11, 2002. Retrieved January 31, 2010.
  2. ^ East End/East Liberty Historical Society (2008). Pittsburgh's East Liberty Valley. ISBN 978-0-7385-5489-1. Retrieved January 31, 2010.