Hope Memorial Bridge

Hope Memorial Bridge

The Lorain–Carnegie Bridge in 1988
Coordinates 41°29′22″N 81°41′37″W / 41.489407°N 81.693554°W / 41.489407; -81.693554 (Hope Memorial bridge)Coordinates: 41°29′22″N 81°41′37″W / 41.489407°N 81.693554°W / 41.489407; -81.693554 (Hope Memorial bridge)
Carries SR 10
Crosses Cuyahoga River
Locale Cleveland, Ohio
Characteristics
Design art deco truss bridge
Total length 1,368.55 meters (4,490.0 ft)[1]
Longest span 69.80 meters (229.0 ft)[1]
Clearance below 28.3 meters (93 ft)
History
Construction end 1932
Lorain-Carnegie Bridge
Location Spans Cuyahoga River between Lorain and Carnegie Aves., Cleveland, Ohio
Coordinates 41°29′22″N 81°41′37″W / 41.489407°N 81.693554°W / 41.489407; -81.693554
Area 8.5 acres (3.4 ha)
Built 1927 (1927)
Architectural style Art Deco, Cantilever Deck Truss bridge
NRHP Reference # 76001398[2]
Added to NRHP October 8, 1976
One of the "Guardians of Traffic"

The Hope Memorial Bridge (formerly the Lorain–Carnegie Bridge) is a 5,865 foot (1,787 meter) long art deco truss bridge crossing the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, Ohio. The bridge connects Lorain Avenue on Cleveland's west side and Carnegie Avenue on the east side, terminating just short of Progressive Field. Pairs of statues designed by sculptor Henry Hering and architect Frank Walker (titled the "Guardians of Traffic"[3]) stand on pylons at each end of the viaduct, symbolizing progress in transportation.

History

A bond issue to pay for the bridge was passed in 1921, but construction was delayed for years due to squabbles over how the money would be spent. The bridge was completed in 1932 at a cost of $4.75M ($82,380,000 with inflation[4]). It stands 93 feet (28 meters) above the river's waterline in order to allow shipping to pass unobstructed. A second lower deck designed to carry truck and commercial traffic was never put into service.

The bridge was renovated in the 1980s and renamed in honor of William Henry Hope, a local stonemason and father of Bob Hope. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on October 8, 1976, after a controversy in which county engineer Albert S. Porter threatened to remove the historic pylons to widen the span, stating, "Those columns are monstrosities and should be torn down and forgotten. There is nothing particularly historic about any one of them. We're not running a May Show here."[5]

On December 10, 2012, officials opened a 14.5-foot (4.4 m)-wide multi-use path on the north side of the bridge, part of a project which will also add lighting to the Guardians of Traffic.[6]

A pair of peregrine falcons nest under the bridge

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Lorain–Carnegie Bridge at Structurae
  2. ↑ Staff (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  3. ↑ "Icons of Cleveland: The Guardians of Traffic". Cleveland Magazine, August 2009. Retrieved 2012-05-30.
  4. ↑ "Consumer Price Index (estimate) 1800–". Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. Retrieved November 10, 2015.
  5. ↑ Snook, Debbi (2002-12-02). "Bridges [sic] of Hopes". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2008-02-19.
  6. ↑ "Lorain–Carnegie (Hope Memorial) Bikeway Opened Today (press release)". Ohio Department of Transportation District 12. 2012-12-10. Retrieved 2012-12-11.

External links

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