Veterans Memorial Bridge (Essex County, Massachusetts)

This article is about the bridge between Salem and Beverly, Massachusetts. For the bridge between Fall River and Somerset, Massachusetts, see Veterans Memorial Bridge (Bristol County, Massachusetts).
Veterans Memorial Bridge

Veterans Memorial Bridge
Carries Route 1A and pedestrian traffic
Crosses Danvers River
Locale Salem, Massachusetts and Beverly, Massachusetts
Official name Veterans Memorial Bridge
History
Opened 1997

Veterans Memorial Bridge is a fixed-span roadway crossing of the Danvers River carrying Massachusetts Route 1A between Salem, Massachusetts and Beverly, Massachusetts. It opened in 1997 replacing a previous historic steel bridge at the same location.[1]

History

The Veterans Memorial Bridge is located at the site of the historic Essex Bridge. Originally a ferry crossed the Danvers River at the location from 1636 to 1788, then the first bridge was built. Rebuilt several times until 1896 when a steel pony truss swing bridge with trestle approaches was constructed by the county. It was constructed by the King Bridge Company of Cleveland, Ohio. Part of the cost of the 1896 bridge was covered by the Bay State Street Railway Company, which operated on a track over the bridge until 1934. The trolley tracks were later removed.

By the early 1990s the steel bridge had deteriorated to a point where it had to be demolished. It was replaced by the current span in 1997.

Current span

The Veterans Memorial Bridge contains seven main spans with the longest measuring 220 feet. It also contains four approach spans ranging between 60 and 160 feet in length. The current bridge is typical of MassDOT's preference for use of weathering steel for steel bridges.[2]

References

Coordinates: 42°32′20″N 70°53′15″W / 42.538845°N 70.887603°W / 42.538845; -70.887603

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