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Lorain-Carnegie Bridge

Hope Memorial Bridge
Lorain-Carnegie.jpg
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)
Longest span 69.80 meters (229.0 ft)
Clearance below 28.3 meters (93 ft)
History
Construction end 1932
Lorain-Carnegie Bridge
Hope Memorial Bridge is located in Cleveland
Hope Memorial Bridge
Hope Memorial Bridge is located in Ohio
Hope Memorial Bridge
Hope Memorial Bridge is located in the US
Hope Memorial 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
Added to NRHP October 8, 1976

The Hope Memorial Bridge (formerly the Lorain–Carnegie Bridge) is a 5,865-foot-long (1,788 m) 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" – stand on pylons at each end of the viaduct, symbolizing progress in transportation.

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 $4.75 million ($83,380,000 with inflation). 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 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." The bridge was renovated in the early 1980s. On September 1, 1983, the Lorain–Carnegie bridge was officially renamed the "Hope Memorial Bridge"; initial reports claimed the new name was chosen in honor of William Henry "Harry" Hope, a local stonemason who helped build the "Guardians of Traffic" sculptures, and the father of comedian and former Cleveland resident Bob Hope. In the years since the dedication, however, claims have varied as to who exactly the bridge's name honors. Some have claimed the bridge was renamed specifically for Bob Hope; others the entire Hope family; and still others have claimed it recognizes Harry Hope along with the other workers who helped erect the giant concrete pylons.


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