Walnut Lane Bridge
| Walnut Lane Bridge | |
|---|---|
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| Crosses | Wissahickon Creek |
| Locale | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Maintained by | City of Philadelphia |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | concrete |
| Total length | 585 feet (178 m) |
| Width | 48 feet (15 m) |
| Height | 147 feet (45 m) |
| Longest span | 233 feet (71 m) |
| History | |
| Construction cost | $260,000 ($5 Million Today) |
| Opened | October 14, 1908 |
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Walnut Lane Bridge
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| Location |
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania United States |
| Coordinates | 40°01′56″N 75°11′59″W / 40.03222°N 75.19972°WCoordinates: 40°01′56″N 75°11′59″W / 40.03222°N 75.19972°W |
| Built | 1907 |
| Architect | George S. Webster (chief) Henry H. Quimby (assistant) |
| NRHP Reference # | 88000815 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | May 10, 1988 |
| Designated PHMC | October 18, 2008 |
The Walnut Lane Bridge is a concrete arch bridge located in Northwest Philadelphia that connects the Germantown and Roxborough neighborhoods across the Wissahickon Creek in Fairmount Park. While drivers may cross the bridge too quickly to notice, the view from underneath the bridge has inspired many artists and writers, such as Christopher Morley. The design was copied from Pont Adolphe in Luxembourg.
The Walnut Lane Bridge was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
Construction began on July 5, 1906 and was completed on October 14, 1908. Over 40,000 tons of rubble concrete (containing a great amount of large stones, for greater shear strength) were poured into the falsework, which had been built from steel bents 20 feet (6.1 m) high and 370,000 board feet (870 m3) of timber, weighing about 900 tons. The bridge's six spans total 585 ft in length (178 m). Very little use was made of reinforcing steel, which was scarce at the time. The roadway is 40 ft (12 m) wide, flanked by 10-foot (3.0 m) reinforced-concrete sidewalks and pre-cast concrete balustrades.
The chief engineer was George S. Webster, assisted by Henry Quimby, both of the Philadelphia Department of Public Works. At the time of its construction, the bridge was the longest and highest concrete arch bridge in the world. While $240,000 was originally committed to the project, the figure rose to nearly $260,000 by completion (equivalent to nearly $6 million in 2008).
The bridge was a direct product of the City Beautiful Movement in Philadelphia in the early years of the 20th century. Seeking to provide community harmony and cooperation through improved public spaces, the bridge was viewed as an achievement that could unite the communities and cultures of Roxborough and Germantown in addition to inspiring a greater civic engagement. It was also believed that more beautiful construction techniques could help to reform a corrupt political system within the city. The Philadelphia community members rallied around the construction of the bridge and the opening was highly anticipated by all ages alike.
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