Collecting bridges

On one side, farmers and firefighters want faster access. On the other, residents like the limitations of age.I could tell you where this shot was taken, but that would spoil half the fun. If you know, give yourself 10 points. If you don’t, go take a drive in Adams County, PA, find it and then take your 10 points. (I’m really a generous scorer.)

Thing is, I enjoy history. Not book stuff, but real wander-around-in-it history.

Bridges do more than keep travelers’ feet dry For instance, this bridge crosses Marsh Creek, between Cumberland and Freedom townships. Built in 1894, the grate-floored structure is on the National Registry of Historic places as one of only a few Baltimore Truss bridges in existence.

It was slated for replacement, but that plan ran into vocal opposition from residents on the north side who enjoyed the “speed bump” that limited trucks and racing cars from cruising among the mini-estates.

On the south side, at least one farmer and a fire department objected to the 11’ 7” clearance, narrow width and three-ton weight limit that forced them to “go around” an extra couple miles.

At any rate, PennDOT postponed the controversy by declaring it’s treasury was low. In 2007, the agency declared the structure unsafe, and barricaded it to all traffic.

I’ve a few other bridges in my collection, and still collecting. Click the thumbnail for a shot of one of my other favorite water crossings.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.