Gray's Ferry Bridge
Encyclopedia
The modern Gray's Ferry Bridge is a four-lane divided highway bridge, built in 1976, which carries Grays Ferry Avenue across the Schuylkill River
and AMTRAK
tracks in the Grays Ferry neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
.
, the main land route to Delaware, Baltimore, and the southern colonies.
According to some historians, the first bridge across the Schuylkill River was a pontoon bridge built about 1780. The Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad
had a floating bridge, which may have coexisted with the 1780 bridge, and carried just cars, not locomotives, across the river. This bridge was followed by a covered highway and railroad bridge in 1838.
built the Gray's Ferry Bridge of 1838 across the Schuylkill River in the Grays Ferry neighborhood in Philadelphia.
.
used the wooden pile fender to construct the swing span in the open position, avoiding interference with river traffic.
Conrail abandoned the bridge shortly after it acquired the Pennsylvania Railroad
properties in 1976, and left it permanently open. An unknown party purchased the bridge in 1987, but the bridge and the fender pilings continue in a deteriorating state in 2010.
Schuylkill River
The Schuylkill River is a river in Pennsylvania. It is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River.The river is about long. Its watershed of about lies entirely within the state of Pennsylvania. The source of its eastern branch is in the Appalachian Mountains at Tuscarora Springs, near Tamaqua in...
and AMTRAK
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
tracks in the Grays Ferry neighborhood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
.
Gray's Ferry
Before there was a bridge, Gray's Ferry connected Philadelphia to the Darby Road (now Woodland Avenue at 47th Street), which was part of the King's HighwayKing's Highway (Charleston to Boston)
The King's Highway is a route over in length in the eastern United States. It joins Charleston, South Carolina, to Boston, Massachusetts. It was named after Charles II of England, who in 1650 directed his colonial governors to build it. It did not become a continuous wagon road until 1735...
, the main land route to Delaware, Baltimore, and the southern colonies.
Floating bridge
Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad
The Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad was the Pennsylvania Railroad's main line from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania southwest to Baltimore, Maryland in the 19th and early 20th centuries...
had a floating bridge, which may have coexisted with the 1780 bridge, and carried just cars, not locomotives, across the river. This bridge was followed by a covered highway and railroad bridge in 1838.
1838 bridge
The Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore RailroadPhiladelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad
The Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad was the Pennsylvania Railroad's main line from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania southwest to Baltimore, Maryland in the 19th and early 20th centuries...
built the Gray's Ferry Bridge of 1838 across the Schuylkill River in the Grays Ferry neighborhood in Philadelphia.
Newkirk Viaduct
The bridge was known at the time as the Newkirk Viaduct, and an obelisk was erected as the Newkirk Monument in honor of Matthew Newkirk (1794–1868), a Philadelphia business and civic leader who was president of the merged company that erected the bridge, the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore RailroadPhiladelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad
The Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad was the Pennsylvania Railroad's main line from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania southwest to Baltimore, Maryland in the 19th and early 20th centuries...
.
US Supreme Court case
This 1838 bridge was cited in the 1865 US Supreme Court case Gilman v. Philadelphia, concerning the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce, including navigable streams in a particular state.1901 highway bridge
In 1901, the City of Philadelphia constructed a new highway bridge, and released the railroad from the obligation to maintain the highway portion of its bridge.1902 rail bridge
The railroad promptly began construction of a swing bridge in 1901, which was completed in October, 1902. This bridge has a 226'-7" long swing span pivoting on a cylindrical stone pier at mid-stream. A wooden pile fender protects the pivot pier and the opened swing span from collisions with boat traffic on the river. The American Bridge CompanyAmerican Bridge Company
The American Bridge Company is a privately held civil engineering firm specializing in the construction and renovation of bridges and other large civil engineering projects, founded in 1900, and headquartered in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Pittsburgh.-Products and industry positioning:The...
used the wooden pile fender to construct the swing span in the open position, avoiding interference with river traffic.
Conrail abandoned the bridge shortly after it acquired the Pennsylvania Railroad
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
properties in 1976, and left it permanently open. An unknown party purchased the bridge in 1987, but the bridge and the fender pilings continue in a deteriorating state in 2010.
See also
- List of crossings of the Schuylkill River
- The Woodlands CemeteryThe Woodlands CemeteryThe Woodlands is a National Historic Landmark District on the western banks of the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It includes a magnificent federal style mansion, a matching carriage house and stable, and a garden landscape that in 1840 was transformed into a Victorian rural...
- Newkirk Viaduct MonumentNewkirk Viaduct MonumentThe Newkirk Viaduct Monument was erected in 1838 at the completion of the Gray's Ferry Bridge in Philadelphia. The bridge was then known as the Newkirk Viaduct, and a monumental obelisk was erected to commemorate its completion...
External links
- Philadelphia History By City History Society of Philadelphia
- Grays Ferry Near Philadelphia, a sketch of the ferry from 1789.