The Hartford–East Hartford railroad bridge is a 5-span

truss bridge A truss bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a truss, a structure of connected elements, usually forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or ...

connecting

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

and

East Hartford, Connecticut East Hartford is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 51,045 at the 2020 census. The town is located on the east bank of the Connecticut River, directly across from Hartford, Connecticut. It is home to aerospac ...

, over the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges at Long Island ...

. The bridge is 1,240 feet in length and 18.3 feet in width and was built ca. 1873 by the

Hartford, Providence and Fishkill Railroad The New York and New England Railroad (NY&NE) was a railroad connecting southern New York State with Hartford, Connecticut; Providence, Rhode Island; and Boston, Massachusetts. It operated under that name from 1873 to 1893. Prior to 1873 it was ...

. The bridge is currently owned and maintained by the

Connecticut Southern Railroad The Connecticut Southern Railroad is a long short-line railroad operating in Connecticut and Massachusetts. The company was formed in 1996 as a spinoff of Conrail by shortline holding company RailTex and subsequently acquired in 2000 by RailA ...

and carries freight traffic.

History

Between 1916 and 1917, the

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to December 31, 1968. Founded by the merger of ...

strengthened the bridge to carry heavier locomotives and trains. The railroad added more abutments, reinforced the structural elements, and also added a second track. The bridge was the scene of a fatal accident in 1925, when two work trains collided, resulting in the death of one railroad employee. Due to the

1936 Northeast Flood The 1936 Northeastern United States flood was a historic flood that occurred across the Northeastern United States, as well as the Mid-Atlantic region and Ohio, in March 1936. Record-setting flooding after a combination of a particularly precipi ...

, the bridge was temporarily taken out of service to assess potential damage. A pile of debris 500 feet long and 300 feet wide was caught under the bridge, requiring it be cleared before the bridge could be inspected and reopened. Until the bridge could be reopened, passenger service across the bridge was replaced by busses. Following a request from the

, in 2011 the state of Connecticut pledged $3 million to support repairs of the bridge, with the Connecticut Southern paying the remaining $1 million.

References

External links

* Railroad bridges in Connecticut Truss bridges in the United States Buildings and structures in East Hartford, Connecticut Buildings and structures in Hartford, Connecticut Bridges in Hartford County, Connecticut {{Connecticut-bridge-struct-stub

History

See also

References

External links