The Turners Falls Road Bridge (officially White Bridge) is a concrete and steel road bridge 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 ...
in the
U.S. state of
. It carries Turners Falls Road and connects the town center of
Greenfield
Greenfield or Greenfields may refer to:
Engineering and Business
* Greenfield agreement, an employment agreement for a new organisation
* Greenfield investment, the investment in a structure in an area where no previous facilities exist
* Greenf ...
and the village of
Turners Falls
Turners Falls is an unincorporated village and census-designated place in the town of Montague in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,512 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropol ...
(in the town of
Montague).
History
The current bridge is the second on this site. Previously, a suspension bridge constructed in 1871 and known as the "Lower Suspension Bridge" was located at the site.
The old bridge was constructed with funds from the towns of Greenfield and Montague and cost about $36,000.
[P.S. Miller and K.J. Scott, ''Montague'']
(Arcadia, 2000) A road connecting the bridge to Greenfield center was laid out by the following year.
[F.M. Thompson, L.J.C. Kellogg, and C.S. Severance, ''History of Greenfield'']
(T. Morey and Son, 1954) The bridge was constructed primarily to allow laborers in Greenfield to easily go to the newly developing village of Turners Falls.
[ The previous bridge was severely damaged in the 1936 flood and the current bridge was constructed soon after.][
In the 1920s, ]Route 2
The following highways are numbered 2. For roads numbered A2, see list of A2 roads. For roads numbered B2, see list of B2 roads. For roads numbered M2, see list of M2 roads. For roads numbered N2, see list of N2 roads.
International
* AH2, As ...
(former New England Route 7) originally left Greenfield via Turners Falls Road, crossing the old suspension bridge into the village of Turners Falls. Route 2 left Turners Falls via Millers Falls Road. In 1932, a more modern bridge capable of handling the increased automobile traffic, the French King Bridge
The French King Bridge is the three-span "cantilever arch" bridge that crosses the Connecticut River on the border between the towns of Erving and Gill, Massachusetts, United States. The bridge, part of Massachusetts Route 2, carries automobile ...
, opened further upstream and Route 2 was relocated to its modern alignment along French King Highway. The former alignment through Turners Falls was designated as Route 2A. The Route 2A designation remained on Turners Falls Road until the 1960s.
The Massachusetts Highway Department started a rehabilitation project in 2010, which is, as of May 2015, almost done.MassHighway project page
/ref>
See also
*List of crossings of the Connecticut River
This is a list of bridges and other crossings of the Connecticut River from its mouth at Long Island Sound upstream to its source at the Connecticut Lakes. The list includes current road and rail crossings, as well as ferries carrying a state high ...
References
Bridge Inventory Data
on NationalBridges.com
Footnotes
External links
Image of the original Lower Suspension Bridge
{{Crossings navbox
, structure = Crossings
Crossings may refer to:
* ''Crossings'' (Buffy novel), a 2002 original novel based on the U.S. television series ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer''
* Crossings (game), a two-player abstract strategy board game invented by Robert Abbott
* ''Crossings'' ...
, place = 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 ...
, bridge = Turners Falls Road Bridge
, bridge signs =
, upstream = Gill–Montague Bridge
, upstream signs =
, downstream = General Pierce Bridge
The General Pierce Bridge is a steel truss road bridge over the Connecticut River between Greenfield, Massachusetts and Montague, Massachusetts carrying Montague City Road.
As of summer 2021, the bridge is closed to vehicle traffic while underg ...
, downstream signs =
Bridges over the Connecticut River
Montague, Massachusetts
Bridges completed in 1871
Bridges completed in 1936
Bridges in Franklin County, Massachusetts
Road bridges in Massachusetts
Steel bridges in the United States
Girder bridges in the United States