The Sakonnet River rail bridge was a

swing bridge A swing bridge (or swing span bridge) is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its center of gravity, about which the swing span (turning span) can then pi ...

that spanned the

Sakonnet River The Sakonnet River is a tidal strait in the state of Rhode Island which flows approximately 14 miles between Mount Hope Bay and Rhode Island Sound. It separates Aquidneck Island from the eastern portion of Newport County. Crossings Below is ...

between

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

and

Tiverton, Rhode Island Tiverton is a New England town, town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 16,359 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. Geography Tiverton is located on the eastern shore of Narragansett Bay, across the Sa ...

, connecting

Aquidneck Island Aquidneck Island, also known as Rhode Island, is an island in Narragansett Bay in the state of Rhode Island. The total land area is , which makes it the largest island in the bay. The 2020 United States Census reported its population as 60,109. T ...

to the mainland.

History

The bridge was built in 1899 by the

Pennsylvania Steel Company The Pennsylvania Steel Company was the name of two Pennsylvania steel companies. The original company was established in late 1865 by: J. Edgar Thomson, president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, Samuel Morse Felton Sr., recently retired president of ...

, replacing a previous crossing constructed when the Newport and Fall River Railroad opened in 1864 and served a succession of railroads; the

Providence and Worcester Railroad The Providence and Worcester Railroad is a Class II railroad operating of tracks in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, as well as New York via trackage rights. The company was founded in 1844 to build a railroad between Providence ...

took over the line in 1982.

Removal from service

The bridge was removed from service in 1980 after being damaged by an overweight train loaded with military equipment. The swing bridge was left in the open position to allow boat traffic to pass and in 1988 a barge ran into it. Since then equipment for tourist railroads on the island has been brought in by barge. The bridge swing structure was removed in late 2006 and the supporting piers were demolished by explosion on February 9, 2007. Only the bridge itself was formally abandoned; the tracks on either side are considered formally active to allow future restoration of service.

Reactivation of the railroad to bridge

After the Anthony Road overpass in Portsmouth, RI was rebuilt in 2019, work was done repairing several washouts to allow use to end of track. The tourist train ran past the Hummocks station built in 2017 to the end of the track on June 15, 2021 to the Sakonnet River rail bridge site. This was the first Old Colony & Newport train past the derail about from the bridge's western pier. The last train from the previous operators on this segment was 1988. The railroad track now officially ends at a bumper post at the foot of an electrical transmission tower on the bridge's western pier point. The Newport & Narragansett Bay Railroad now regularly operates its Dinner Train to the bumping post.

References

External links

Bridge demolition projectSakonnet River Channel RailRoad Bridge
Has direct overhead picture Demolished bridges in the United States Bridges in Newport County, Rhode Island Buildings and structures demolished in 2007 Bridges completed in 1899 Swing bridges in the United States Railroad bridges in Rhode Island Old Colony Railroad Former railway bridges in the United States 1899 establishments in Rhode Island Steel bridges in the United States {{RhodeIsland-bridge-struct-stub

History

Removal from service

Reactivation of the railroad to bridge

See also

References

External links