__NOTOC__ The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, Schuylkill River Viaduct, also called the Reading Railroad Bridge and the Falls Rail Bridge, is a stone

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...

bridge that carries rail traffic over the

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It fl ...

at Falls of Schuylkill (East Falls) in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Located in

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, with ...

, the bridge also spans Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive, and Kelly Drive. The name Philadelphia & Reading Railroad (P&R) was later shortened to

Reading Company The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and commercial rail transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states that operated from 1924 until its 1976 acquisition by Conrail. Commonly called ...

. The current bridge replaced an adjacent P&R bridge, built of wood. Prior to that, one of the earliest suspension bridges in the United States, the 1808

Chain Bridge at Falls of Schuylkill Chain Bridge at Falls of Schuylkill was an 1808 iron-chain suspension bridge built across the Schuylkill River, north of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Designed by inventor James Finley, it became the model for his later chain suspension bridges. I ...

(collapsed 1816), was built at this location. That was replaced by an 1818

covered bridge A covered bridge is a timber-truss bridge with a roof, decking, and siding, which in most covered bridges create an almost complete enclosure. The purpose of the covering is to protect the wooden structural members from the weather. Uncovered woo ...

, built on the chain bridge's abutments, which washed away in 1822. The P&R built the viaduct, 1853–56, to carry coal cars to the company's coal terminal on the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock (village), New York, Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of N ...

in the Port Richmond neighborhood of

. The bridge's design is unusual. Because it crosses the river at an oblique angle, it was constructed as a ribbed skew arch bridge, with each span composed of a series of offset stone arches. While not as strong as skewed barrel vault spans, these spans were much easier to build, while still assuring that the bridge's

abutment An abutment is the substructure at the ends of a bridge span or dam supporting its superstructure. Single-span bridges have abutments at each end which provide vertical and lateral support for the span, as well as acting as retaining walls ...

s were parallel to the water flow. The bridge consists of six main spans, each in length, crossing the river and Kelly Drive; five small arches, each in length, for pedestrian traffic; and a arch over Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive. The bridge's spandrel walls were reinforced in 1935. The bridge continues to carry rail traffic to this day.

Gallery

File:Phila Falls Rail Bridge01.png, Philadelphia & Reading Railroad, Schuylkill River Viaduct. File:Schuylkill river.jpeg, 1872 map of Schuylkill River showing the Reading Railroad Bridge. File:View from Laurel Hill cemetery, Phila, by Kilburn Brothers.jpg, "View from Laurel Hill Cemetery, Phila." (before 1895). Reading Railroad Bridge, with former Falls Covered Bridge in the distance. File:Falls Station bridge leading to Richmond, near Philadelphia, from Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views.jpg, "Falls Station Bridge leading to ortRichmond, near Philadelphia."

Laurel Hill Cemetery Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia. Founded in 1836, it was the second major rural cemetery in the United States after Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston, Massachusetts. The cemetery is ...

is visible in the upper right.

Notes

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External links

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Listing
at Philadelphia Architects and Buildings {{Crossings navbox , structure = Crossings , place =

, bridge = Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, Schuylkill River Viaduct , bridge signs = , upstream =

Twin Bridges Twin bridges are a set of two bridges running parallel to each other. A pair of twin bridges is often referred to collectively as a twin-span or dual-span bridge. Twin bridges are independent structures and each bridge has its own superstructur ...

, upstream signs = US 1

, downstream =

Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, Bridge at West Falls The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, Bridge at West Falls is a stone and iron plate girder bridge that is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It carries two CSX Trenton Subdivision tracks over Kelly Drive, Schuylkill River, and Martin Luther ...

, downstream signs = Bridges in Philadelphia Bridges over the Schuylkill River Skew bridges Reading Railroad bridges Bridges completed in 1856 Railroad bridges in Pennsylvania Historic American Engineering Record in Philadelphia Viaducts in the United States Stone arch bridges in the United States

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links