The Homestead Grays Bridge, also known as the (Homestead) High Level Bridge, was built in 1936 and spans the

Monongahela River The Monongahela River ( , )—often referred to locally as the Mon ()—is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed August 15, 2011 river on the Allegheny Plateau in north-cen ...

between Homestead Borough and the southernmost tip of

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

Squirrel Hill Squirrel Hill is a residential neighborhood in the East End of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The city officially divides it into two neighborhoods, Squirrel Hill North and Squirrel Hill South, but it is almost universally treated ...

neighborhood. It is notable as the first bridge to incorporate the Wichert Truss, which uses a quadrilateral shape over each support, into its design. This made the truss statically determinate, so that forces in the structural members could be calculated. There are very few surviving Wichert Truss bridges, including one other example in Pittsburgh, the

Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge The Charles Anderson Memorial Bridge is a steel deck truss bridge located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The bridge carries the four-lane roadway of Boulevard of the Allies across a ravine known as Junction Hollow, connecting the ne ...

History

The bridge was dedicated on Saturday November 20, 1937, having cost the county of Allegheny $2.75 million to build and originally carried four highway lanes and two streetcar tracks of Pittsburgh Railways Company. It replaced the 1897 Brown's Bridge (Homestead and Highland Bridge) which was upstream and had linked Brown's Hill Rd on the north bank and Second Avenue between Ann Street and Amity Street, Homestead on the south bank. On July 11, 2002, the Homestead High-Level Bridge was renamed the Homestead Grays Bridge in honor of the

Homestead Grays The Homestead Grays (also known as Washington Grays or Washington Homestead Grays) were a professional baseball team that played in the Negro leagues in the United States. The team was formed in 1912 by Cumberland Posey, and remained in continuo ...

baseball team. The bridge had grown dilapidated since its last renovation in 1979. In 2006 and 2007 work was undertaken to rehabilitate the bridge: the deck was removed and the structure stripped down to the steel, then the steel structure repaired and a new, wider deck put on. The new deck is six feet wider in traffic lanes—three feet on each side—and also has broader pedestrian walkways. The railings and lighting were replaced with reproductions of historic models, and the entire structure received a new coat of blue-grey paint.

References

External links

Pittsburgh bridges"Homestead Grays Bridge work set for March" (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)Homestead span honors baseball team
— Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article on the renaming of the Homestead Grays Bridge

— Pittsburgh City Paper column explaining some of the history of the bridge
Homestead Grays bridge to gain 18 plaques honoring Negro League Greats
{{Pittsburgh Bridges Bridges in Pittsburgh Bridges over the Monongahela River Bridges completed in 1937 Homestead Grays Road bridges on the National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Historic Landmarks Homestead, Pennsylvania National Register of Historic Places in Pittsburgh Steel bridges in the United States 1937 establishments in Pennsylvania

History

See also

References

External links