Arch Bridge (Bellows Falls)
Encyclopedia
The Bellows Falls
Arch Bridge was a three-hinged steel through arch bridge over the Connecticut River
between Bellows Falls, Vermont
and North Walpole, New Hampshire
. It was structurally significant as the longest arch bridge in the United States
when it was completed in 1905.
The bridge was built to circumvent an existing toll bridge and prevent people from using the Boston and Maine Railroad
bridge, a practice the railroad preferred to discourage.
The Tucker Toll Bridge was a Town lattice truss covered bridge
completed in 1840, which was acquired by the towns in 1904 and free thereafter. The Sullivan Railroad Bridge is (was?) a successor to the original Sullivan RailroadSullivan Railroad was acquired by the Boston and Maine Railroad
, see List of defunct New Hampshire railroads bridge of 1851, built in 1882.
Residents didn't like the toll, and the Boston and Maine Railroad
objected to pedestrians on its bridge, so following the town meetings in March 1904, the two communities formed a joint committee to buy out the toll bridge and replace it with a new bridge, with five members from each town. Walpole budgeted US$30,000 (US$ with inflation), and Rockingham, Vermont
, which includes Bellows Falls, offered US$15,000 (US$ with inflation). The two towns established an agreement whereby maintenance costs would be shouldered two-thirds by Walpole and one-third by Rockingham.
Design restrictions included the objection by the Bellows Falls Canal Company to any abutments obstructing the river near their canal, as well as the river bed conditions in the area, which are roughly 25 feet (7.6 m) deep, with no firm location for a pier. This situation was thought to necessitate a single span structure.
The Bridge Committee held an unsuccessful design competition. While the Committee received many proposals for deck trusses and suspension bridges, all were too expensive. Having exhausted their own proposals, they requested assistance from the railroad. Since it wished to eliminate pedestrians from its bridge, the railroad complied by providing a company engineer as an advisor. The advisor, a Mr. Snow, recommended that the Committee hire civil engineer J.R. Worcester, from Boston
, Massachusetts, which they did.
of 60 lbs per square foot (0.42 pound per square inches (2,895.8 Pa)). The total weight of the steel in the bridge was 450 short tons (401.8 LT). As a departure from a normal three-hinged arch, the design incorporates a compression joint in each arch instead of the third hinge. He apparently did this to provide a continuous visual curve through the arches.
The roadway, made of Georgia
yellow pine
, was 32 feet (9.8 m) wide, with a total length just shy of 650 feet (198.1 m), a 3.3% grade up to the Vermont side, and a load capacity of 100 lbs. per square foot (0.69 pound per square inches (4,757.4 Pa)).
Construction crews assembled the arches from both sides of the river. A rivalry formed between the two crews, likely making the assembly go faster, as the trusses were connected on 10 January 1905, after twenty-eight working days. The total construction time was four months, using a total of forty-five men. The bridge was formally opened on 20 March 1905.
The same can not be said of the Flood of 1936. The failure of a major ice jam sent large ice blocks downriver, striking both ends of the upstream side of the bridge. This left the structure leaning upstream. Only the horizontal bracing prevented collapse. The decision was made to fix, rather than demolish, the bridge. This required efforts similar to the initial construction. The results were that the truss span was shortened by 54 feet (16.5 m) during the procedure in November and December 1936. This was performed by the American Bridge Company (Philadelphia), at a cost of US$120,000 (US$ in present terms), substantially less than would have been required to replace the bridge.
In 1961, the bowstring truss span was replaced with an I-beam girder bridge. In 1971, the State of New Hampshire closed the whole bridge to vehicular traffic due to concerns about its condition.
In 1982, the bridge was demolished. However, the demolition crew required five tries before the bridge collapsed, as it apparently wasn't as weak as they had been led to believe.
The current Arch Bridge, also known as the New Arch Bridge and the Church Street Bridge, is a 4-span girder bridge
of no particular architectural significance. With the closure on 19 March 2009 of the Vilas Bridge roughly 1 miles (1.6 km) downstream, traffic on this bridge has increased dramatically. Due to the at-grade rail crossing on the New Hampshire side of the bridge, traffic can take 20 minutes just to get across. Also, there are safety concerns with the loss of redundancy between the Church Street Bridge and the Vilas Bridge.
Bellows Falls, Vermont
Bellows Falls is an incorporated village located in the town of Rockingham in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,165 at the 2000 census...
Arch Bridge was a three-hinged steel through arch bridge over the Connecticut River
Connecticut River
The Connecticut River is the largest and longest river in New England, and also an American Heritage River. It flows roughly south, starting from the Fourth Connecticut Lake in New Hampshire. After flowing through the remaining Connecticut Lakes and Lake Francis, it defines the border between the...
between Bellows Falls, Vermont
Bellows Falls, Vermont
Bellows Falls is an incorporated village located in the town of Rockingham in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,165 at the 2000 census...
and North Walpole, New Hampshire
North Walpole, New Hampshire
North Walpole is a census-designated place in the town of Walpole in Cheshire County, New Hampshire. It had a population of 828 at the 2010 census....
. It was structurally significant as the longest arch bridge in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
when it was completed in 1905.
The bridge was built to circumvent an existing toll bridge and prevent people from using the Boston and Maine Railroad
Boston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
bridge, a practice the railroad preferred to discourage.
History
Due to industrial and transportation expansion, residential needs in the Bellows Falls and Walpole area expanded in the late 1800s. The only means of crossing the river was provided by the Tucker Toll Bridge and the Sullivan Railroad Bridge.The Tucker Toll Bridge was a Town lattice truss covered bridge
Covered bridge
A covered bridge is a bridge with enclosed sides and a roof, often accommodating only a single lane of traffic. Most covered bridges are wooden; some newer ones are concrete or metal with glass sides...
completed in 1840, which was acquired by the towns in 1904 and free thereafter. The Sullivan Railroad Bridge is (was?) a successor to the original Sullivan RailroadSullivan Railroad was acquired by the Boston and Maine Railroad
Boston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
, see List of defunct New Hampshire railroads bridge of 1851, built in 1882.
Residents didn't like the toll, and the Boston and Maine Railroad
Boston and Maine Railroad
The Boston and Maine Corporation , known as the Boston and Maine Railroad until 1964, was the dominant railroad of the northern New England region of the United States for a century...
objected to pedestrians on its bridge, so following the town meetings in March 1904, the two communities formed a joint committee to buy out the toll bridge and replace it with a new bridge, with five members from each town. Walpole budgeted US$30,000 (US$ with inflation), and Rockingham, Vermont
Rockingham, Vermont
Rockingham is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, along the Connecticut River. The population was 5,309 at the 2000 census. Rockingham includes the incorporated villages of Bellows Falls and Saxtons River, as well as a large rural area west of Interstate 91.Rockingham has no formal...
, which includes Bellows Falls, offered US$15,000 (US$ with inflation). The two towns established an agreement whereby maintenance costs would be shouldered two-thirds by Walpole and one-third by Rockingham.
Design restrictions included the objection by the Bellows Falls Canal Company to any abutments obstructing the river near their canal, as well as the river bed conditions in the area, which are roughly 25 feet (7.6 m) deep, with no firm location for a pier. This situation was thought to necessitate a single span structure.
The Bridge Committee held an unsuccessful design competition. While the Committee received many proposals for deck trusses and suspension bridges, all were too expensive. Having exhausted their own proposals, they requested assistance from the railroad. Since it wished to eliminate pedestrians from its bridge, the railroad complied by providing a company engineer as an advisor. The advisor, a Mr. Snow, recommended that the Committee hire civil engineer J.R. Worcester, from Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts, which they did.
Design
The final design was defined by Worcester as a 540 feet (164.6 m)-long three-hinged arch with a suspended roadway, plus a 104 inch bowstring truss over the railroad on the Vermont side. The large arch type of structure was new in the USA, but not in Europe, which may have inspired Worcester's concept. The two arch trusses were each designed to support a loadStructural load
Structural loads or actions are forces, deformations or accelerations applied to a structure or its components.Loads cause stresses, deformations and displacements in structures. Assessment of their effects is carried out by the methods of structural analysis...
of 60 lbs per square foot (0.42 pound per square inches (2,895.8 Pa)). The total weight of the steel in the bridge was 450 short tons (401.8 LT). As a departure from a normal three-hinged arch, the design incorporates a compression joint in each arch instead of the third hinge. He apparently did this to provide a continuous visual curve through the arches.
The roadway, made of Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
yellow pine
Yellow pine
Yellow pine may refer to the following:*Certain pines in the subgenus Pinus subgenus Pinus:**In American forestry, a term for several closely related species of pine with yellow tinted wood, including the Southern Yellow Pines , and the non-Southern yellow pines and several others...
, was 32 feet (9.8 m) wide, with a total length just shy of 650 feet (198.1 m), a 3.3% grade up to the Vermont side, and a load capacity of 100 lbs. per square foot (0.69 pound per square inches (4,757.4 Pa)).
Initial construction
Using falsework made of spruce, later recycled by the local paper mills, construction started in November 1904. Assembly of the main superstructure began in December 1904, from prefabricated sections by Louis A. Shoemaker and Company (Philadelphia).Construction crews assembled the arches from both sides of the river. A rivalry formed between the two crews, likely making the assembly go faster, as the trusses were connected on 10 January 1905, after twenty-eight working days. The total construction time was four months, using a total of forty-five men. The bridge was formally opened on 20 March 1905.
Subsequent changes
The river flooded in 1927. The resulting damage to the bridge was not major, so the bridge was soon back in operation.The same can not be said of the Flood of 1936. The failure of a major ice jam sent large ice blocks downriver, striking both ends of the upstream side of the bridge. This left the structure leaning upstream. Only the horizontal bracing prevented collapse. The decision was made to fix, rather than demolish, the bridge. This required efforts similar to the initial construction. The results were that the truss span was shortened by 54 feet (16.5 m) during the procedure in November and December 1936. This was performed by the American Bridge Company (Philadelphia), at a cost of US$120,000 (US$ in present terms), substantially less than would have been required to replace the bridge.
In 1961, the bowstring truss span was replaced with an I-beam girder bridge. In 1971, the State of New Hampshire closed the whole bridge to vehicular traffic due to concerns about its condition.
In 1982, the bridge was demolished. However, the demolition crew required five tries before the bridge collapsed, as it apparently wasn't as weak as they had been led to believe.
Current bridge
The current Arch Bridge, also known as the New Arch Bridge and the Church Street Bridge, is a 4-span girder bridge
Girder bridge
A girder bridge, in general, is a bridge built of girders placed on bridge abutments and foundation piers. In turn, a bridge deck is built on top of the girders in order to carry traffic. There are several different subtypes of girder bridges:...
of no particular architectural significance. With the closure on 19 March 2009 of the Vilas Bridge roughly 1 miles (1.6 km) downstream, traffic on this bridge has increased dramatically. Due to the at-grade rail crossing on the New Hampshire side of the bridge, traffic can take 20 minutes just to get across. Also, there are safety concerns with the loss of redundancy between the Church Street Bridge and the Vilas Bridge.