The Point Pleasant–Byram Bridge was a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

that spanned 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 ...

between Point Pleasant,

Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

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, ...

and the Byram section of Kingwood,

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

History and notable features

This bridge was a four-span, steel structure that was built in 1903 after several previous predecessor bridges (built in 1855 as a wooden

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 ...

and in 1892 as a first steel structure) were wiped away by weather-related incidents. Funded by a private company, it was a

toll bridge A toll bridge is a bridge where a monetary charge (or ''toll'') is required to pass over. Generally the private or public owner, builder and maintainer of the bridge uses the toll to recoup their investment, in much the same way as a toll road. ...

until 1919, when the Pennsylvania–New Jersey Joint Bridge Commission bought it.Dale, Frank T
''Bridges Over the Delaware River: A History of Crossings''
p. 54.

Rutgers University Press Rutgers University Press (RUP) is a nonprofit academic publishing house, operating in New Brunswick, New Jersey under the auspices of Rutgers University. History Rutgers University Press, a nonprofit academic publishing house operating in New B ...

, 2003. . Accessed July 8, 2016. "When, in 1919, owners of the financially stressed Point Pleasant-Byram Bridge offered their structure to the Joint Bridge Commission, they instantly struck a deal." One of the most modern on the river, the bridge was the first bought in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Flooding from

Hurricane Connie Hurricane Connie was a Category 4 hurricane that contributed to significant flooding across the eastern United States in August 1955, just days before Hurricane Diane affected the same general area. Connie formed on August 3 from a tropical ...

and

Hurricane Diane Hurricane Diane was the first Atlantic hurricane to cause more than an estimated $1 billion in damage (in 1955 dollars, which would be $ today), including direct costs and the loss of business and personal revenue. It formed on August ...

in 1955 wiped away the bridge once again, along with three others along the river. Unlike the Yardley–Wilburtha and

Portland–Columbia Pedestrian Bridge The Portland–Columbia Pedestrian Bridge (formally known as the Portland-Columbia Toll Supported Pedestrian Bridge) is a footbridge that crosses the Delaware River, at Portland, Pennsylvania, connecting to Columbia, in Knowlton Township, New ...

, the Point Pleasant–Byram Bridge was never replaced and the piers remain in the Delaware River.

Bibliography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Point Pleasant-Byram Bridge Bridges completed in 1855 1855 establishments in New Jersey Delaware River Joint Toll Bridge Commission Bridges over the Delaware River Former toll bridges in New Jersey Former toll bridges in Pennsylvania Kingwood Township, New Jersey Interstate vehicle bridges in the United States