The Point Pleasant–Byram Bridge was a

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

that spanned the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...

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, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

and the Byram section of Kingwood,

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a County (United States), county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the county was the state's List of counties in New Jersey, 4th-least populous ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

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 Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Pub ...

, 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 tropica ...

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 $11,764,962,686 today), including direct costs and the loss of business and personal revenue. It tropical ...

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 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