Pennsylvania Railroad Connecting Bridge
Encyclopedia
Pennsylvania Railroad, Connecting Railway Bridge is a stone arch bridge
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
that carries Amtrak
Northeast Corridor
and SEPTA commuter rail lines over the Schuylkill River
. It is located in Fairmount Park
, just upstream from the Girard Avenue Bridge
.
It is also known as Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Division, Bridge No. 69. Other names are the Connecting Railway Bridge, the Connection Bridge, the New York Connecting Bridge, the New York Railroad Bridge, and the Junction Railroad Bridge.
, a company affiliated with the Pennsylvania Railroad
(PRR). Its purpose was to connect the PRR's southern and northern lines, and to be part of an eventual direct PRR line from Washington, DC to New York City
. Before the bridge's construction, PRR trains took a circuitous route between PRR's West Philadelphia and North Philadelphia Stations.
The bridge was probably designed by John A. Wilson
, chief engineer of the Connecting Railway Company, who surveyed the route in 1863. George Brooke Roberts
, a PRR engineer, took over the project after Wilson's 1864 resignation, oversaw its whole construction, and later was president of the PRR. Thomas Seabrook was the masonry contractor. It opened to traffic on 2 June 1867. The Connecting Railway became a PRR subsidiary in 1871.
The initial bridge was narrow, only 2 tracks, with an iron truss at mid-river. This was a 236-foot-3-inch-long (72 m) cast- & wrought-iron, arch-reinforced, double-intersection Whipple truss. In 1873, PRR slightly reduced the truss's span by widening the stone piers at each end. Probably at the same time, PRR removed the truss's reinforcing arch. In 1897, PRR replaced the Whipple truss with a Pratt truss of the same length.
Between 1912 and 1915, PRR more than doubled the width of the bridge to 5 tracks, and replaced the mid-river iron truss with two massive stone arches. Alexander C. Shand was the designer of what was essentially a new bridge, built to look like the original. Eyre, Shoemaker, Inc. was the masonry contractor. Reiter, Curtis & Hill built the reinforced concrete bridges over Lansdowne Drive and West Girard Avenue
, and the viaduct curving around the Philadelphia Zoo
.
, Thomas Moran
, and, most famously, Max Schmitt in a Single Scull
(1871) by Thomas Eakins
.
Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
that carries Amtrak
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Northeast Corridor
Northeast Corridor
The Northeast Corridor is a fully electrified railway line owned primarily by Amtrak serving the Northeast megalopolis of the United States from Boston in the north, via New York to Washington, D.C. in the south, with branches serving other cities...
and SEPTA commuter rail lines over the Schuylkill River
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River is a river in Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River.The river is about long. Its watershed of about lies entirely within the state of Pennsylvania. The source of its eastern branch is in the Appalachian Mountains at Tuscarora Springs, near Tamaqua in...
. It is located in Fairmount Park
Fairmount Park
Fairmount Park is the municipal park system of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It consists of 63 parks, with , all overseen by the Philadelphia Department of Parks and Recreation, successor to the Fairmount Park Commission in 2010.-Fairmount Park proper:...
, just upstream from the Girard Avenue Bridge
Girard Avenue Bridge
The Girard Avenue Bridge is an automobile and trolley bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that carries Girard Avenue over the Schuylkill River. It connects the east and west sections of Fairmount Park, and the Brewerytown neighborhood with the Philadelphia Zoo. The current bridge is the third...
.
It is also known as Pennsylvania Railroad, New York Division, Bridge No. 69. Other names are the Connecting Railway Bridge, the Connection Bridge, the New York Connecting Bridge, the New York Railroad Bridge, and the Junction Railroad Bridge.
Initial bridge
The bridge was built 1866-67, by the Connecting RailwayConnecting Railway
The Connecting Railway was a subsidiary of the Pennsylvania Railroad, incorporated to build a connection between the Philadelphia and Trenton Railroad and the PRR in the city of Philadelphia.-Connecting railway:...
, a company affiliated with the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
(PRR). Its purpose was to connect the PRR's southern and northern lines, and to be part of an eventual direct PRR line from Washington, DC to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Before the bridge's construction, PRR trains took a circuitous route between PRR's West Philadelphia and North Philadelphia Stations.
The bridge was probably designed by John A. Wilson
Wilson Brothers & Company
A prominent Victorian-era architecture and engineering firm established in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Wilson Brothers & Company was especially noted for its structural expertise. The brothers designed or contributed engineering work to hundreds of bridges, railroad stations and industrial...
, chief engineer of the Connecting Railway Company, who surveyed the route in 1863. George Brooke Roberts
George Brooke Roberts
George Brooke Roberts was a civil engineer and the 5th president of the Pennsylvania Railroad ....
, a PRR engineer, took over the project after Wilson's 1864 resignation, oversaw its whole construction, and later was president of the PRR. Thomas Seabrook was the masonry contractor. It opened to traffic on 2 June 1867. The Connecting Railway became a PRR subsidiary in 1871.
The initial bridge was narrow, only 2 tracks, with an iron truss at mid-river. This was a 236-foot-3-inch-long (72 m) cast- & wrought-iron, arch-reinforced, double-intersection Whipple truss. In 1873, PRR slightly reduced the truss's span by widening the stone piers at each end. Probably at the same time, PRR removed the truss's reinforcing arch. In 1897, PRR replaced the Whipple truss with a Pratt truss of the same length.
Expanded bridge
Girard Avenue
Girard Avenue is a major east-west thoroughfare in Philadelphia that forms sections of U.S. Route 13 and U.S. Route 30 and is named for Franco-American financier Stephen Girard. It stretches through several major neighborhoods of Philadelphia, including West Philadelphia, Fishtown, Kensington, and...
, and the viaduct curving around the Philadelphia Zoo
Philadelphia Zoo
The Philadelphia Zoo, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on the west bank of the Schuylkill River, was the first zoo in the United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on March 21, 1859, its opening was delayed by the American Civil War until July 1, 1874...
.
In art
The Connecting Railway Bridge, with its line of stone arches, was a frequent subject for painters. It appears in works by Carl Philipp Weber, Edmund Darch LewisEdmund Darch Lewis
Edmund Darch Lewis was an American landscape painter known for his prolific style and marine oils and watercolors. Lewis was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in a well-to-do family. He started training at age 15 with German-born Paul Weber of the Hudson River School...
, Thomas Moran
Thomas Moran
Thomas Moran from Bolton, England was an American painter and printmaker of the Hudson River School in New York whose work often featured the Rocky Mountains. Moran and his family took residence in New York where he obtained work as an artist...
, and, most famously, Max Schmitt in a Single Scull
Max Schmitt in a Single Scull
Max Schmitt in a Single Scull is an 1871 painting by Thomas Eakins in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art...
(1871) by Thomas Eakins
Thomas Eakins
Thomas Cowperthwait Eakins was an American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator...
.