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The Stone Arch Bridge is a stone arch railroad bridge in
Keene, New Hampshire Keene is a city in, and the County seat, seat of Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 23,047 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 23,409 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. Keene is ho ...
, United States. Built in 1847 to carry the
Cheshire Railroad The Fitchburg Railroad is a former railroad company, which built a railroad line across northern Massachusetts, United States, leading to and through the Hoosac Tunnel. The Fitchburg was leased to the Boston and Maine Railroad in 1900. The main li ...
, it is one of the best-preserved pre-1850 stone arch bridges in the nation. The bridge was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2012, and the
New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places The New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places (NHSRHP) is a register of historic places administered by the Government of New Hampshire, state of New Hampshire and the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources. Buildings, districts, s ...
in 2006. It now carries a multi-purpose
rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...
.


Description and history

The Cheshire Railroad Stone Arch Bridge is located in southeastern Keene, in what is today a comparatively rural setting. It is located at mile marker 89.41 of the former Cheshire Railroad, about south of the Cheshire Rail Trail's junction with Marlboro Street (
New Hampshire Route 101 New Hampshire Route 101 (NH 101) is a state-maintained highway in southern New Hampshire extending from Keene to Hampton Beach. It is the major east–west highway in the southern portion of the state. The western terminus of NH 101 is in Keene ...
). Its central feature is a massive granite arch, spanning the river known as
The Branch The Branch is a river located entirely in the city of Keene, in southwestern New Hampshire in the United States. It is a tributary of the Ashuelot River, itself a tributary of the Connecticut River, which flows to Long Island Sound. While its ...
. The arch has a span of , a width of , and a rise of about above the typical water level. The arch is buttressed by broad wing walls, which are, like the arch itself, finished in
ashlar Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
granite. The wing walls enclose an earthen causeway that give the entire structure an effective length of about . The bridge was built in 1847 by the Cheshire Railroad, which was built to provide service between
Fitchburg, Massachusetts Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 census. Fitchburg is home to Fitchburg State University as well as 17 public and private e ...
, and
Bellows Falls, Vermont Bellows Falls is an incorporated village located in the town of Rockingham in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,747 at the 2020 census. Bellows Falls is home to the Green Mountain Railroad, a heritage railroad; the ...
. The bridge was designed by Lucian Tilton, probably with the assistance of William Scollay Whitwell, both of whom achieved some renown for their railroad engineering and other public works projects. The bridge was one of the largest stone arch bridges in the nation at the time of its construction, and was noted for its finely crafted finish. The line was formally abandoned in 1972, and much of its New Hampshire right of way was acquired by the state in the 1990s. The bridge now carries the multi-use
Cheshire Rail Trail Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial and Historic counties of England, historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Sta ...
.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Cheshire County, New Hampshire This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Cheshire County, New Hampshire. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Cheshire County, New Ha ...
*
List of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New Hampshire This is a list of bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. Current listings Former listing See also *List of covered bridges in New Hampshire Notes References {{National Register of Histo ...


References

{{NRHP in Cheshire County, New Hampshire Railroad bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in New Hampshire Bridges completed in 1847 Buildings and structures in Keene, New Hampshire Bridges in Cheshire County, New Hampshire 1847 establishments in New Hampshire National Register of Historic Places in Cheshire County, New Hampshire New Hampshire State Register of Historic Places Stone arch bridges in the United States