Chestnut Street Bridge
Chestnut Street Bridge | |
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Chestnut Street Bridge, ca. 1869, looking West | |
Coordinates | 39°57′11″N 75°10′52″W / 39.95306°N 75.18111°WCoordinates: 39°57′11″N 75°10′52″W / 39.95306°N 75.18111°W |
Carries | Chestnut Street |
Crosses |
Schuylkill River Schuylkill Expressway |
ID number | 670003009022930 |
Characteristics | |
Design | Steel continuous, Girder and Floorbeam System |
Total length | 113.1 metres (371 ft) |
Width | 13.5 metres (44 ft) (roadway) |
Load limit | 65.7 t (72.4 short tons) |
Clearance below | 8.2 metres (27 ft) |
History | |
Opened | 1957 |
Statistics | |
Daily traffic | 16109 (2006) |
The Chestnut Street Bridge is a bridge across the Schuylkill River that carries Chestnut Street in Philadelphia, USA. The original 1861 bridge was "a bridge whose scale and use of cast iron made it singular in the United States and throughout the world".[1] The 1957 bridge, now one way, helps connect West Philadelphia with the rest of the city.
History
Construction of the first Chestnut Street Bridge, designed by Strickland Kneass,[2] started on 4 September 1861.[3][4] That bridge cost $500,000, was 1,528 feet (466 m) long, and was constructed of cast iron, with approaches and piers of granite.[3] When the bridge formally opened on 23 June 1866,[5] it was the second connection between Center City, Philadelphia and West Philadelphia, after the Market Street Bridge.[2]
In 1957, to make way for the Schuylkill Expressway, the western pier of the bridge was removed, and the main spans of the bridge were replaced.[1]
In 2011, a weight restriction was placed on it due to its age.
In film
- In the popular film Shooter, FBI agent Nick Memphis (played by Michael Peña) is abducted while walking across the Chestnut street bridge.
- One episode of Hack was filmed on the bridge.[6]
See also
References
- 1 2 "Creativity in Cast Iron: Strickland Kneass’s Chestnut Street Bridge". Retrieved 2008-03-14.
- 1 2 "WEST PHILADELPHIA - "THE GENESIS OF 'THE CITY ACROSS THE RIVER'"". Retrieved 2006-10-01.
- 1 2 "A Tour of Philadelphia's Waterfront in 1876". Retrieved 2006-10-01.
- ↑ "Civil War History in Philadelphia, PA". Retrieved 2008-03-14.
- ↑ "Philadelphia Timeline, 1866". Retrieved 2006-10-01.
- ↑ "Jim Loftus: Getting The Hack of "Hack"". Retrieved 2009-10-19.
External links
- 1869 photo of the bridge
- Library of Congress (HAER) Photos of the original bridge before it was torn down in 1957
- The Chestnut Street Bridge, Philadelphia, July 28, 1865 by D.J. Kennedy, Historical Society of Philadelphia
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